


The Prince and The Servant

by CandiceWright



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, Alternate Universe - Fairy Tale, Canon Era, Fluff, Happy Ending, M/M, Magical Accidents
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-01
Updated: 2020-09-01
Packaged: 2021-03-06 23:20:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 25,118
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26237029
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CandiceWright/pseuds/CandiceWright
Summary: Once a year, King Uther Pendragon organizes a great feast to maintain good spirits between the lower classes known as the Commoner's Banquet. Merlin, a poor village boy always dreamed of going, and this year he'd finally have the chance. There he meets Prince Arthur and it's love at first sight. After a night of dancing and laughing, they wake up and realize something is terribly wrong. Due to a magical mishap, they've switched places, leaving them in a world completely unlike their own. They have one month before they can meet again, but until then, they'll have to learn how to live each other's lives. But with Merlin's impulsiveness and disregard for rank and Arthur's cluelessness about any type of farm labour, it might prove harder than they thought.
Relationships: Gwen/Morgana (Merlin), Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)
Comments: 14
Kudos: 100
Collections: After Camlann Big Bang





	The Prince and The Servant

**Author's Note:**

> Loosely based on The Prince and The Pauper by Mark Twain
> 
> Disclaimer: We don't own BBC Merlin.
> 
> Author's notes: This story was a wild ride from the beginning to the end. Thank you for everyone who helped me along the way. To Irene and Cris for the wonderful beta work and for dealing with me while I stressed about the order of the scenes. To Gwen and Suna for their endless support and love (and for kicking my ass occasionally). To Tori for her kind words of encouragement. To the mods for organizing this wonderful fest. And, of course, to Mariek for her incredible artwork that made this story so much better.
> 
> Artist's note: This is the first time I participate, so I was really nervous, but it ended being so much more fun than I imagined.  
> Illustrating this fic has been a blast, candicewright’s story is super cute and uplifting! I hope you guys enjoy it as much as I did.  
> Big thanks to my art beta brolinskeep and to the mods for organising this. Thank you to all the people who keep this fandom alive and kicking. ♥︎

The Prince and the Servant

There was once a boy who lived in a small village with his mother. His life was what you would consider ordinary, one of limited luxury and hard work. 

However, this boy was all but ordinary. Within him existed the most extraordinary power, one that no man could even dream of, magic born of the Earth itself.

His gifts made him stand out from the crowd and he was often looked down upon by his fellow neighbours. This didn't affect him though, he didn't need much more than his mother and his best friend Will to be happy.

However, like many people of his standing, this boy dreamed of a life that seemed unreachable. He wished to know the livelihood of a noble, with all the riches and dances and jewels and what that would be like. He loved to daydream about the comfort and the ease that would come with such a life, the feeling of not having to worry about having enough food to make it through the winter. He wondered if he would ever be able to have that and to give something back to his mother for raising him and caring for him alone all of those years.

This didn't mean, of course, that he didn't dream of the commodities that would come along with such a lifestyle. He would be lying if he said he didn't often imagine himself sleeping in a soft bed draped in silk covers instead of on the cold stone floor or going about his day with a full stomach and a sense of deep satisfaction. But it felt nice to indulge in such fantasies once in a while.

This boy's name was Merlin, and when the sun retired for the night and right before he did the same, he would sit by the fire with his mother and share his dreams with her in the privacy of their home.

“Mother, what would it be like to be a King?” he asked one night.

His mother chuckled and said, “Well, my child. To be a king would mean having feasts every day, fighting for your Kingdom, meeting a lot of beautiful Queens and Princesses and Princes…”

Merlin could imagine it very well. He could see the copious amounts of warm food piled into the table in such a manner that there was no space for the goblets and pitchers. And the beautiful ladies wearing embroidered gowns sewn with gold thread and precious stones. Flowers would decorate every corner and beautiful candelabras would hang from the ceiling, casting shadows of joy and dancing onto the walls of the banquet hall. The smell would be a mixture of expensive perfumes of exotic origin, those that only money and power could buy. Capes of all hues and colours would hang from the men's shoulders, fluttering behind and tracing beautiful patterns as they danced. And, in the centre of it all, the King, wearing a beautiful golden crown with embedded jewels and crystals, enveloped by the warmth of his lavish clothes and with a stomach full of a deliciously decadent meal.

It was only natural then that his magic decided to portray the scene in such vivid detail.

A ballroom buzzing with activity. Laughter and conversation filling every corner. Beautiful people in close proximity. All of that painted in the ethereal golden light that emerged from his fingertips and that reflected in his eyes.

“Merlin,” his mother said in awe at the scene.

But then her smile turned sad.

For the reality was that such a life would never be theirs. Not when all they were now was a couple of nobodies, living in a lost town, days of travel away from the nearest castle.

“Merlin, you should go to sleep now,” she said, patting his head and running her fingers through his hair.

He knew the sound of defeat in his mother's voice, for he had often felt it himself.

But he was but a dreamer and this was something he couldn't give up.

“One day we'll be there, mother. I promise you that,” he said.

“Oh, child,” his mother responded as she kissed his forehead. “Sleep.”

So he closed his eyes and kept dreaming.

***

There was once a boy who lived in a great castle. He had everything he wanted and more, for he was the Prince of a mighty kingdom, the greatest of them all.

But this boy wished for something else. He craved to know what love felt like, what it was like to be able to trust, to care. He didn't know motherly caresses, for his mother had died in childbirth, or words of simple reassurance since his father was cold as stone, and he wanted nothing but to be able to feel them, or just to _feel_.

And yet, he couldn't. He was a Prince, and princes we're not allowed to want, to wish.

He was not his own, he was his people's and that's how it would always be.

“One step forward. And back, keep your back straight. Raise your head, Arthur.”

“Ugh, I can't do this,” the Prince said, breaking from the stiff stance he'd been in for the last twenty minutes.

His teacher turned to him, eyebrows knitted together in exasperation, and said, “You have to, there's a ball in a few days and you have to attend. It wouldn't do for the Prince of Camelot to not know how to dance now would it?”

“But we've been trying for over two hours and I still can't do it! And that's just today! We tried for four yesterday!”

The moment he raised his voice, a stern call resonated through the ballroom.

“Arthur.”

He lowered his head, his anger leaving him.

“Father.”

“Your Highness.”

Both Arthur and his tutor bowed.

“I trust the lessons are being fruitful.”

“Of course,” Arthur lied with practised ease.

“You'll be ready for the ball, I gather then.”

“Yes, my lord, ” the old teacher said. “We'll just need a couple more hours.”

He shot Arthur a pointed look. 

His father seemed to notice that, because he said, “I'll cancel the afternoon's training session then.”

“But we were doing knight trials!” Arthur screamed in outrage.

“I'm sorry, Arthur, but your responsibility as Crown Prince goes first,” the king said in a voice that made it clear he wasn't sorry at all.

He wanted to protest, he really did. But it would have been useless. The Commoner's Banquet only happened once a year and it was Uther's sole effort to come closer to the lower classes. It was a night of celebration where they held both a feast and a dance and invited every person in the kingdom to join. They would spend the evening eating and laughing and they would forget the things the kingdom didn't do for them, his father thought. It was a way to keep the people happy. For that reason, he did all he could to make things perfect and that included making sure that Arthur gave the impression of being the perfect Crown Prince, and this year apparently that meant knowing how to dance perfectly. But they understood the importance of the date, so much that even Morgana moderated her behaviour for the occasion. Because of that, any attempt to leave the lessons to oversee the new knight that would be joining their ranks would be futile at best and would get him into serious trouble at worst.

So he gave in.

“Yes, father,” he said, not looking at Uther's satisfied expression.

The King nodded and left the room and Arthur was left to the pitiful sound of music, a stiff posture and hurting feet.

***

“I really don’t get your obsession with those rich arseholes,” Will said.

Merlin laughed, “It’s not an obsession and it’s not them I’m interested in.”

It was true. Obsession was a very strong word after all.

Will scoffed and said, “Yeah ‘cause they’re all arrogant and pompous. Imagine yourself like that. Sir Merlin.” He snorted, also forcing a laugh out of Merlin.

“Yeah, no I can’t really imagine that,” he said. Just thinking about everyone referring to him with a title made him shudder. That would be horrific. However, he knew that not everything would be bad. He said as much to Will, “It would be nice to have all that food though.”

“Or the bed,” Will shot back.

“Or the clothes.”

“Or the ladies.”

“Will!”

They both giggled furiously and Merlin felt himself blush. _That’s Will for you._

“What? I’m right,” he said, still grinning.

“You’re ridiculous.”

“No, but really, Merls. If you really want to know what it’s like, why don’t you go to the Commoner’s Banquet?”

Oh, and wasn’t that the question.

Merlin had been thinking about it since he’d first hear about it from his mother. She told him that once a year, King Uther Pendragon would organize a grand feast to get closer to his people, or so he said. And although his motivations for the event could be questioned, the truth was that it was known for being a once in a lifetime experience. Merlin had expressed his desire to attend immediately, but soon he had been turned down.

“It’s only for the people of Camelot. And besides, I don’t think my mother would love having to travel for days only to go to a dance.” Will nodded.

“You’re right, you’re right. But it may be just what you need to get all of those absurd ideas out of your head.”

“Maybe,” Merlin said with a smile tugging at his lips. “I mean, I would really love to go.”

“You would,” Will huffed, but soon his expression darkened slightly. “Though, now that I think about it, it may not be the best idea.”

“Why?”

“Magic is banned there, isn’t it? Under penalty of death.”

Those words made Merlin’s blood run cold. His magic was so instinctive, so second nature that he didn’t know if he could even go one day without using it, even if just by accident.

“Oh yeah, that’s true. Well, one can dream, right?” he said, but he felt his dreams slipping away from his fingers once more, leaving him in his reality again.

He didn’t know if this was a good or a bad thing.

  
  


***

Dinner with his father and Morgana was a common occurrence, but that didn’t mean it was any fun. Arthur really loved his adoptive sister, but he was sure she got off on torturing him.

Case in point:

“You’re really not looking forward to this Banquet, are you, Arthur?”

“I-” _Damn her_ , he thought. “Not really.”

“Arthur!”

“I’m sorry, father. I just don’t really enjoy dancing, that’s all,” he said, though it wasn’t. That was far from being the only reason.

“But your lessons have been going well,” Uther said.

“Yes, father.”

“Oh, come on!” Morgana exclaimed. “One would think you were going to your own execution. It’s just a feast, Arthur. We have dozens of those a year. And besides, it’s only one night.”

Arthur shrugged, “I guess… It’s just- Why do I even have to attend the banquet? It's for them, so why do we have to attend?” Uther scoffed at this.

“They have to feel cared for. Spending a night with people like us makes them feel as if they were on our level. That way they'll be happy. I can't have a kingdom full of angry demanding peasants, Arthur.”

Arthur bit his tongue to avoid saying that they should feel cared for because they actually cared for them, not for some fake excuse of a feast that only happened once a year. They were his people too after all. In his opinion, if they were angry it would be because they had every right to be.

But of course, he couldn't say any of this.

So he just nodded and left the subject alone.

They went back to eating in silence after that, but a pointed look from Morgana told him she wasn’t going to leave the subject alone.

***

A few weeks came and went as usual. Merlin helped his mother with the house and will with the crops, day and night until it was time to sleep

However, one day, something was waiting for him.

“I have a surprise for you, dear,” Hunith said one day as Merlin came back from gathering firewood.

“What is it?” he asked, not understanding what occasion could bring this on, which only made him more curious.

“I managed to contact an old friend in the city of Camelot,” she started. “Remember Gaius?”

“The Court Physician?” Merlin asked, vaguely recalling the old man. From when he visited Ealdor. He must have been around ten at the time, so it was natural his memory of him wasn’t the best. He did recall the smell of medicinal herbs and his kind words though.

“Yes, we've been friends for a very long time, long before I met your father,” Hunith explained. “I spoke to him and he managed to get us an invitation to The Commoner's Banquet.”

Merlin rose to his feet.

“What?!? We're going to Camelot? To a feast?”

“Yes, my boy, we are.”

Merlin jumped and wrapped his arms around her, almost lifting her from the ground.

“Ha! That's incredible! Finally, I'll see what the fuss is all about. Imagine me, mother, dressed in fine clothes, eating a huge meal fit for a king.”

“I don't think I can get you the clothes but I do believe the food is guaranteed,” she said.

That was enough. No. Perfect. That was _perfect._ He knew exactly what he had to do.

“Thankyouthankyou-”

Hunith laughed, “You are very welcome my dear. Now, let us eat and then rest. We have a lot of things to prepare in the next few days.”

For once, Merlin didn't complain about having work to do.

The next day, Merlin looked through their things. He found what he was looking for in a chest where they kept different things they had bought over the years. This, in particular, was a piece of blue fabric they had bought in a market near the capital of Essetir a few years ago. They hadn’t had the chance to use it since it was a bit finer than what they were accustomed to.

Now was his chance.

He grabbed that and a piece of green fabric and got to work.

It took him a few days to finish, but one night, it was done.

It had been a hard day. Hunith had spent the entire morning speaking to Matthew to make sure that someone would take care of their house when they left for Camelot. After that, she'd gone to ask for mounts because while Medlin was a young boy that could surely walk all the way to the palace, she wasn't as youthful and energetic and such a trip would take a toll on her. Finally, someone agreed to lend her a horse. They would have to ride together, though she didn't think that would be too much of a problem.

When she finally arrived home, Merlin had his head buried in some kind of task, clearly focused.

She walked up to him and tapped him on the shoulder.

“What are you doing, my child?”

“Clothes. For the Banquet.”

Hunith inspected the fabric in Merlin's hands. It was a midnight blue tunic embroidered with white threads. The patterns were sewn onto the cloth with excellent craftsmanship and the patterns formed beautiful shapes of fantasy and elegance. Dragons, flowers and stars all decorated the tunic and Hunith wondered where her son had learned such a skill with that level of mastery. She had taught him the basics long ago when he was nought but a child. Now, the young man in front of her had created a beautiful garment purely by skill alone.

“So, what do you think?”

“Oh, Merlin. It’s beautiful.”

His entire face lit up at the praise and he stood up to wrap his arms around his mother.

“Oh! I almost forgot,” he said before reaching behind him.

“I made something for you too”

Hunith found then in her hands a dark green gown she could have only dreamed of. It was simple, but elegant and made with more care than anything she owned.

“Merlin, I-” she tried, but her words didn't come out and her eyes glistened with the reflection of the fire.

“You deserve much more, mom,” Merlin said.

She wiped at her eyes.

“I love you, son.”

***

“The feast starts in only two days, Arthur, which means guests will start to come in today. Make sure you're in the throne room in a candle mark and I want you on your best behaviour. The same goes to you, Morgana,” Uther said, not leaving any room for discussion.

“Yes, father.”

Uther walked out of the room and Arthur was about to do the same, but Morgana put her arm around his.

“I'm actually quite excited about this feast. It's not every day we get to be around normal people and not pompous nobles that have a stick up their arse,” she said as if her words didn't border on being a punishable offence.

“Father wouldn't be happy to hear you say that.”

“Perhaps not, but you'll admit I'm right,” she said with a smirk and Arthur, while he would definitely not admit it, wasn't inclined to deny it either. Satisfied, Morgana changed the subject. “Anyway, you’re definitely not looking forward to it.”

Arthur rolled his eyes.

“To spending a night having to be polite and pleasant to everyone while a bunch of peasants try to win my favour? Sure.”

Morgana shook her head, “You don't mean that, you wouldn't mind marrying someone of a lower station.”

Arthur acknowledged the truth in this, but added, “Not if I was marrying for love, but I really doubt I'll find someone in the banquet.”

“Hey, you never know. You might just find your soulmate across the room. Then, you could ask them to dance and the lean in and-”

“Morgana!”

“What?” she asked, putting on an innocent face. “It would be very romantic.”

“Right. But I can't see that father would be too happy about me not marrying for an alliance.”

“Uther is just too stuck in his old ways. And yet he married for love.” 

Morgana was right, of course. Uther had loved his mother which was, in Arthur's opinion, probably why he treated him with such contempt, as if he blamed him for her death. 

Arthur couldn’t resent him for that.

In fact, he wasn't sure he didn't blame himself as well.

Morgana, sensing where his mind had gone, gave him a playful shove.

“Just you wait and see. You never know who you may meet.”

Arthur laughed but said nothing at all.

***

The trip to Camelot was arduous, but after a day and a night of travel, Hunith and Merlin arrived at the gates of Camelot.

The horse they had borrowed was very well-tempered and barely complained despite having to carry two people. They spent the night at a humble inn in a town by the road. It had been quite full, probably with other people that were heading to Camelot. The dinner and conversation had been pleasant and the room comfortable, though Merlin could barely contain his excitement enough to fall asleep.

They had gotten back on the road the next day and had been riding until nightfall, only stopping for food and water. The journey was a pretty one, filled with gorgeous forests and fields and mountains. Merlin almost felt the trip was worth it for that alone.

But now the castle towered over Merlin in all its glory. Magnificent stone walls and adornments decorated the dimly lit structure in the moonlight and Merlin would have thought he was dreaming if it wasn’t for how much better this was than his dreams. He had known the royal residence must have been a thing of beauty but never had he understood the true meaning of that until he was standing right in front of it.

At the gates, a man greeted them and took their horse, briefly giving them directions inside. He walked through the hallways, mesmerized at every detail, every tapestry, every carving in the wall. Women and men dressed in finery already roamed the castle. Most of the ladies were dressed in shades of red and gold. Camelot colours, Merlin realized, and as he looked at his own clothes he wondered if he had made a mistake. He looked at his mom then to ask, but her expression was so filled with joy and delight that he dared not disturb her with his worries.

“Merlin, dear, the dance is about to start but I would like to thank Gaius before I go to the hall. Would you mind going ahead?”

“I can go with you if you like-”

“No, child. I know how much you’ve been dreaming of this moment. Go then, enjoy it.”

He smiled and nodded and looked at his mother as she disappeared around the corner.

Only when she was out of sight did he realize he had been left alone in the corridor and he had no idea where the ballroom was. He looked around trying to find it when he felt someone tapping his shoulders.

“I’m sorry, sir. You seem lost.”

Merlin turned around to face his saviour and found a man dressed in chainmail, a cloak with the Pendragon crest on his shoulders. He was tall and had long, curly hair. Because he seemed friendly enough and because Merlin was truly and utterly lost, he nodded.

“Yes, I’m afraid I am.”

“Would you like me to lead you to the hall?” the man asked.

“Oh, yes, um. Thanks.”

The man smiled, surely amused by Merlin’s lack of finesse. He then remembered something and thought it was his chance to ask.

“Did I miss a message saying we should dress in the colours of Camelot?”

The man chuckled, “No, I just fear everyone is trying to impress either the king or the prince.”

“What for? It’s not like they’re to win their favour. We’re commoners after all.”

“Indeed, but news of the prince’s search for a consort must have gotten out somehow and now every eligible lady in the land wishes to earn his affections.”

He nodded, “I understand if this is the lifestyle that awaits them.”

The man laughed, “Yes, the royal life is one to envy most of the time. The time that it isn’t however…”

“I think the food and drink and comfortable bed more than make up for that,” he quickly retorted.

“Most people here seem to think that.”

“That is because that is precisely what we’re lacking,” Merlin pointed out.

“You don't seem too interested in gaining royalty’s friendship.”

“Not really. It’s their life that I envy, but having to marry to get it without any feelings seems more trouble than it’s worth. Besides, I’m not that special. I’m sure His Highness would not be interested in the likes of me.”

“I think that you’re the most interesting person I’ve met so far,” the man said.

“There’s not much to go against though, is there?” Merlin said, stopping to gesture around him as if to say ‘See?’. The man laughed and seeing that he had made his point, Merlin resumed walking. “Anyway, erm… Sorry, I don’t believe I got your name.”

“Sir Leon.”

“Sir Leon. A knight, could have guessed that.”

“The Prince’s first knight, actually.” Merlin considered this.

“Hmm, makes sense.”

Sir Leon raised an eyebrow, “Does it?”

“Indeed, you’re a nice man. If I were him, I too would like to fight by your side. If I were able to fight, that is,” he said and the knight laughed.

“What is your name?”

“Merlin.”

“Well, Merlin. I believe we’ve arrived,” he said stopping in front of a large wooden door.

Sir Leon pushed it open to reveal the banquet hall.

Merlin couldn’t believe his eyes.

“This- this is-”

“I know,” Sir Leon said.

Merlin walked into the room like in a daze for that place was even more magnificent than he had imagined. 

The banquet hall was decorated in shades of bright reds and illuminated in the beautiful molten golds of the candlelight. Some blue rays of moonlight made their way through the window, creating shadows that tinted the warm colours of the feast with pale cool hues. The tables were filled to the brim with food, except everything was so much more than he'd ever thought it could be, every plate holding something that made his stomach growl with a hunger he would have sworn he didn't feel. It smelt like pure luxury and decadence, with a hint of something sweet and joyful.

The jewels worn by guests sparkled in their blinding glory because of course everyone had brought out their best for such an event. Merlin thought that perhaps he should feel embarrassed in comparison since his clothes were humbly made by his own hand. But the happiness he felt was so overwhelming that he didn't dwell on the sentiment for long.

With that overpowering feeling washing over him, he walked inside with the sole purpose of making the most of the night.

Sir Leon went back outside with a smile on his face. _What a strange man,_ he thought. _This is bound to be interesting_.

***

The Prince looked around the large hall wishing, hoping to find someone that caught his eye, someone worth his time. But all he could see were red silks and gold embroidery and bright rubies and all he could think of was how hard some people were trying to impress him.

And then he found it.

A flash of midnight blue and silver that greatly contrasted the warm tones that flooded the room. Dark and deep, like the tales of the ocean he one day wished to see.

He felt it, that visceral need to get close and closer and closer still, not knowing why. But he couldn’t fight it, so he strode forward, not caring about the trail of gasps and whispers behind him.

The sea of people obstructed his way, but they made way for him as soon as they noticed who he was. He was about to get to where he wanted to be when a clang resonated through the walls of the hall.

His father spoke, “Welcome to all the citizens of Camelot. We appreciate your presence here today and hope that everything is to your liking. I hereby declare the feast begins. Let us sit down and eat!”

Arthur had no intention of doing that, but then an arm looped through his.

“Come on, let’s sit down,” Morgana whispered in his ear and dragged him away.

He sat by his father, as he used to when there was a feast. The first dishes and drinks were served but the food held none of his attention. He was too busy scanning the room for that blue _, blue-_

He found it. Next to a woman dressed in a shade of green sat the man. He was smiling, his face as bright as the sun. Arthur had never been more enchanted by someone in his life.

The boy had the blackest hair he’d ever seen, even darker than Morgana’s. His skin was pale, almost white, and smooth. The blue of his tunic complimented that of his eyes, which were blue as well, not unlike Arthur’s own, but a different shade, one that reminded him of the sky of a summer day.

Then those eyes met his, and all thought escaped Arthur completely. So much so that he almost spilt wine on himself.

“Arthur,” Morgana said, “are you alright? You look red. Did you have too much wine already?”

“Don’t be stupid, I haven’t even had the chance to try it,’ he said with much less heat than usual. “Anyway, I’m fine.”

“Right,” Morgana said, rolling her eyes. “Just remember to have fun.”

Arthur scoffed at her evil smirk and shook his head before going back to ignoring her.

When he looked back, the boy was no longer looking at him, but instead talking to the woman next to him, who Arthur assumed was his mother. 

He was laughing with abandon, head tipped back and hands on his stomach. He was beautiful. Arthur needed to talk to him.

He tried to focus on his food for a while since it wouldn’t look good if the Crown Prince didn’t eat at his own feast. The food was good, but not noteworthy. It tasted the same as it always did, as did the wine.

After one dish and two cups, he felt warm and fuzzy. He wasn’t drunk, but he felt like it, felt like his rationality had left him completely when he noticed the man staring at him.

This time, he met his gaze. The boy’s eyes widened for a second as if he wasn’t expecting to catch his attention despite already having it. But soon his surprise faded and he smiled, wide and beautiful and Arthur had never believed in love at first sight but he didn’t know what else to call the feeling in his chest.

Now with a lost appetite, he could only hope for the feast to pass as soon as possible. He never thought he would be looking forward to the dance part of the night.

The feast didn't go by quickly, however. It was tedious and slow, as these things usually were, only made worse by the fact that everyone kept asking for more food. It's okay, Arthur thought. Let them have this. But his heart didn't agree because he glared at every single one of those extra dishes that the servants brought in. And they seemed to never stop coming.

When they were finally, _finally,_ up to the dessert, Arthur was restless. He left the fruit untouched, deciding to drink some more wine instead. Morgana eyed him with clear suspicion, but his father didn't notice, thankfully.

The dishes were emptied one last time and the room abandoned the food to get into a comfortable and happy conversation. Arthur's leg was bouncing incessantly under the table. nor at least it was until Morgana kicked him.

“Ow!”

“If you don't want me to hit you, then stop bouncing! You're going to dig a hole in the ground,” she said. The audacity.

“Why are you doing that, Arthur?” his father asked. _Dammit, Morgana_.

But before he could respond, she cut in again, “I'm sure he just wants to get to dancing as soon as possible.”

“Why do I like you again?”

“Because I'm your wonderful sister, of course. Keep up, Arthur.”

“Yeah, no. That's not it.”

“Kids,” Uther interrupted, “stop fighting right this second. It's unbecoming.”

“Yes, father,” Arthur agreed at the same time that Morgana said, “Yes, Uther.”

“Besides, this can be solved very easily.” Uther stood up and ordered everyone to quiet down. “Let us move to the ballroom. It's time for the party to start!”

He shot Morgana a look of complete and utter betrayal to which she responded with a smirk, the traitor. But he was secretly pleased about this since he had been looking forward to this moment since the very beginning of the night. He just couldn't let Morgana know or else she would be super smug about it and no thank you.

Uther stood up and led the way, followed by his son and his ward and some guards. The ballroom was also decorated extensively, giving off an air of power and superiority. Arthur suppressed the urge to roll his eyes.

Soft playful music filled the place. The people gathered around the room, obviously unsure of what to do.

“Arthur, would you and Morgana like to open the dance?” Arthur knew this was less of a question and more of an order.

So he nodded and gestured for Morgana to lead the way. He didn't appreciate her grin and raised eyebrow, but he decided that it would be best not to cause a scene.

They got in position and started to dance. The good thing about dancing with Morgana was that, even though he would never admit it out loud, she was an incredible dancer. Arthur didn't have to do much to lead her. In fact, it would have been fair to say she was leading him. He didn't particularly mind this given how bad he was at dancing himself.

“You're tense, Arthur. Why don't you relax a bit?”

“You do that. I'm trying not to step on you.”

She scoffed, but she didn't really deny it.

“Are you going to tell me what was bothering you at dinner or am I going to have to find out by myself?” she asked. 

“I don't know what you're talking about.” _I am not talking about it with you_ , he meant and Morgana knew it, the harpy.

“So that's how it is, huh? Well, if I had to guess I would say it has something to do with mister blue eyes over there.” If she wasn't sure before, Arthur's sharp head turn towards the boy at that moment would have confirmed it. “Good taste, he's quite pretty.”

“Could you please just shut up?”

“No, I don't think I will,” she responded. “You should talk to him.”

“And what do you think I'm planning to do when we finish dancing?”

“Oh, well, I don't know. You can be very dense sometimes, Arthur. It wouldn't surprise me if you two just keep staring at each other without saying anything for the rest of the night.”

Okay, she had a point, not that he was going to tell her that of course.

It was then that the music changed and other people started joining the dance. Morgana stopped and patted him on the shoulder.

“Go get him, Arthur. I don't want to see your face tonight.”

Arthur rolled his eyes and laughed. “Thank you, Morgana. I love you too.”

She hit him again before turning around and finding Gwen, her maid, who looked gorgeous in a light purple gown that Morgana had commissioned and then given it to her saying that she just had it laying around.

Maybe he should stop taking relationship advice from her after all.

However, he did as she suggested, and walked up to the man who was standing alone near the wall.

“This is a ball, you know,” he said, startling the boy into turning around. “You should be dancing.”

The man laughed and _damn_ his smile was even prettier up close.

“I would if I had anyone to dance with. And if I knew how to dance, that is.”

“Not knowing how to dance does not seem to be stopping anyone here,” Arthur said gesturing to the dance floor where everyone just seemed to be following the music in their own way. He couldn’t blame them, though. It certainly seemed more fun than the stuffy dance he’d had to be a part of.

“Ah, I guess you’re right,” he said with a chuckle.

“Perhaps, you would like to dance with me.”

“I do not dance with strangers,” the boy said and wow, Arthur wasn’t expecting that. 

He laughed, tipping his head back.

“Surely you must know who I am.”

The man grinned, “Sitting next to the King might have given it away. However, you are yet to introduce yourself.”

Arthur shook his head at the audacity of this boy, who was raising his eyebrows expectantly.

“Ah, yes. of course. Where are my manners?” he asked, amusement clear in his voice. “I am Prince Arthur of Camelot.”

He smiled and nodded, as if to say ‘Now that wasn’t so hard, was it?’ 

Then he reciprocated, “Nice to meet you, I am Merlin of Ealdor.”

“Ealdor? That isn’t within Camelot’s borders,” he said, not understanding what someone from Cendred’s kingdom would be doing here. This was a feast for the people of Camelot after all.

“No, it isn’t, but my mother is good friends with Gaius, the court physician. He invited us.”

That made more sense, Arthur thought.

“Then I shall trust Gaius’s judgement.” The man—Merlin—hummed in agreement. “Shall we dance, then?”

“Who am I to refuse?” Merlin said, but his voice made it clear that he certainly would if he didn’t want to. The thought made Arthur’s stomach turn in unexpected excitement.

He extended a hand and led Merlin to the dancefloor, just as he had with Morgana. Except this time, he felt much more at ease, more relaxed. This wasn’t him putting on a show for everyone, this wasn’t putting on a public face. This was for him, to have fun dancing with a gorgeous man.

Maybe the night wouldn’t be so bad after all.

They started off slow, Merlin wasn’t lying when he said he didn't really know how to dance. But Arthur led him, and despite not being great at it himself, Merlin started getting the hang of it soon.

Figures and colours flashed around them and he felt like he was floating, giddy with joy and warmth from the wine. 

“I’m hoping the feast was satisfactory,” Arthur said, an awkward way of starting a conversation, but not knowing what else to say. Merlin snorted.

‘Satisfactory is one way of putting it.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean I’ve never had so much food in my life.”

“Ah,” Arthur said, causing Merlin to laugh again.

“Yes, ah,” he said. “So I’m guessing that was a normal meal for you?”

Arthur nodded.

“A bit more extravagant, but yes.”

“Wow, perks of being royalty, I guess.”

“It’s not _all_ great,” Arthur said, getting defensive.

“Oh, right. I’m sure it must be extremely hard to have people serving you and bowing to you all day.”

“That’s not all I do, you know? Being a prince is actual work. I have to attend council meetings and train the knights and-”

“And have warm clothes and sleep in a comfortable bed. Oh yes, truly a terrible life.”

“You are ridiculous,” Arthur said.

Merlin grinned, “I am right, though.”

“Why is being a farmer harder than being a prince, huh?” 

Merlin stopped dancing and looked at him wide-eyed, “Are you serious? Please tell me you’re not serious.”

“I am.”

“Oh my god, you are a prat.”

“Hey!”

Merlin tipped his head back and laughed. 

“Do you seriously not know how hard being a farmer is? You are so entitled, I’m sure you wouldn’t last a day in the fields.”

“And you wouldn’t last a day being a prince,” Arthur countered.

“I actually think I could get used to everyone doting on me all day,” he said.

“It’s quite tiring.”

“Oh yes, I’m sure it must be exhausting,” Merlin said in a sarcastic tone. Arthur rolled his eyes.

“I feel like this conversation is getting us nowhere,” Arthur said.

“You just don’t want to admit I’m right.”

Arthur ignored that comment, “Tell me a bit more about you, Merlin of Ealdor.” Merlin giggled.

“Alright. I’m eighteen winters old, I live alone with my mother who is that lovely woman in green,” he said and pointed to her, “and this is my first time in Camelot. Is that enough information?”

“And your father?” Artur asked. Merlin’s smile dimmed.

“I never met him,” he responded and Arthur almost wished he didn’t ask.

“I never met my mother either,” he said instead. “She died in childbirth.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be, I didn’t know her.”

‘And yet you’re still allowed to miss her.”

Arthur chuckled darkly, “My father would disagree.”

“Your father doesn’t seem like a very nice person.”

“That’s treason, Merlin,” he said without any heat. “He’s...difficult,” Arthur granted, “but he truly means the best for me.”

“Sometimes we can do bad things while having good intentions.”

Arthur hummed but didn’t comment. The mood from earlier had turned grim and sour and the night seemed to be spoiled. 

This didn’t stop Merlin, however. In fact, it seemed to spur him on.

“I think we should get out of here,” he said.

“Really?” Arthur asked. “And where do you suggest we go?”

Merlin seemed to think about it for a moment. “Why don’t you give me a tour of the castle? unless your father wouldn’t like that.”

Arthur shrugged.

“He probably won’t like anything that I do, so might as well.”

Merlin’s laugh was infectious and he couldn’t help but smile as he got dragged out of the ballroom.

Slipping out was fairly easy, probably because everyone was already too drunk and happy to pay attention to him. 

He took Merlin around the castle, showing him the council room, the throne room and the kitchens first. Merlin looked at everything with curiosity and awe and Arthur wondered what it would be like to see this place for the first time. He knew every corner and every secret passage, he’d made very sure of it when he was a kid. Nothing was new to him so despite knowing of its objective beauty he couldn’t really understand the scope of it. However, Merlin’s expression made him feel that maybe it really was a place worth appreciating.

Merlin insisted on going outside, so Arthur walked him through the courtyard, to the training grounds and the gardens.

All the while, Merlin teased him and laughed with him. Arthur didn’t remember the last time someone had treated him like… well, like a normal person. Merlin didn’t call him by his title or avoided trying to offend him. Quite the contrary actually, he insulted him when he thought Arthur deserved it and he called him out when he thought he was being arrogant or unkind. It was refreshing.

Arthur thought he could get used to it.

After walking around for hours, they made it to the bottom of the stairs of the North Tower, where they sat alone with wide smiles on their faces.

“You know, Arthur. You’re not too bad for a prince.”

“And you're not bad for a peasant,” Merlin laughed and turned to look at him.

“You look happy,” he said, a soft expression on his face.

Arthur hummed in agreement, “You look happy too.”

“I think that I am. I could do this forever.”

“Me too.” But Arthur's smile faded. “And yet we cannot.”

And the dream shattered.

Of course, of course, they couldn't. Merlin was only a commoner, a peasant not at all suited for a prince. Uther would never approve of such a union, no matter his feelings for the other man. 

He knew Merlin felt the same, that he felt it in his chest too. And yet they could do nothing about it.

The air around them had gotten heavy, their previous joy faded. But Arthur couldn't have that, not tonight which was likely the only night he'd get to have this.

So he said, “Still think you like this?”

“What, the feast?

“No, the lifestyle.”

Merlin smirked and said, “Hmm, I could be persuaded.”

“It's not that great, believe me. I would do anything to have your life.”

“You wouldn't last a day,” he stated.

“No? Try me.”

“A prince like you working on the field all day? I don't think so.”

“I think I could.”

“I'd like to see you try.”

Arthur raised an eyebrow. “Is that a challenge?” he asked and Merlin’s grin widened.

“Maybe.”

“Well, I promise that someday I'll let you rule over my kingdom while I work in the fields.”

“Great.”

They sat in comfortable silence for a second before Arthur spoke again.

“Look, I know this is mad, but I like you. Let us have tonight without caring about my father or the kingdom or whatever else-”

But he couldn’t say anything else because Merlin’s lips pressed against his. It was sweet and chaste at first and everything Arthur could have ever dreamed of. His lips were soft and wet and tasted sweet like the wine they’d been drinking before. He chased the taste, opening his mouth to deepen the kiss. Merlin’s lips parted under his and his tongue pressed inside, wanting him closer and closer still. It was intoxicating. He never wanted it to stop.

They kissed for what could have been minutes or hours before they parted, breathless and giddy. 

They looked at each other for a moment and they both burst out laughing, eyes closed and heads tipped back, warmth and golden light all around them.

***

The sound of a curtain sliding open startled him awake.

“My lord, it's time to wake up,” a voice called.

“Just a few more minutes,” he said, snuggling more into the very comfortable blankets.

“I'm afraid your father has called you for a council session.”

That woke him up.

“My fath- Where am I?” he said looking around. Did he fall asleep last night somewhere and he couldn’t remember? Had he been that drunk?

“Your...chambers. Are you feeling quite alright, sire? Would you want me to call the court physician?”

Camelot. They were in Camelot. And the court physician was Gaius. Gaius would be able to help, he thought.

“Yes, I think that would be for the best.”

The servant nodded, “Right away, sire. I'll leave your breakfast on the table.”

Well, this wasn't right. 

He had just been dancing with Arthur and then...then what? Had he drunk so much as to black out? He certainly didn't think so. Besides, with the amount of food he'd eaten, all the alcohol he had would have lost its effect. But then, how had he ended up here, in these chambers? For they had to be some sort of royal chambers, of that there was no doubt. But if he'd spent the night there surely that wouldn't prompt the servants to call him sire, would it?

There were a lot of questions and not many answers.

Maybe he had been confused with a visiting noble, that would explain why the servant had called him sire and why he'd been summoned to a council session. But there was something that didn't still didn’t add up. The boy had said these were his rooms as if there was no doubt about it and he was the weird one for asking.

He was hoping Gaius would know what was happening.

“My boy, are you alright?” said the physician after walking into the room.

“No, I don't think so, Gaius.”

“Why? What's the matter.”

“I'm afraid there's been some sort of mistake, I'm not supposed to be here.”

“Why would you suggest such a thing? Where else would you be?”

“With my mother? In my village? Certainly not in some noble's chambers!”

“I don't know what you're talking about. These are your chambers, the ones assigned to the Crown Prince.”

“Crown Pr- Oh no, there's something completely wrong here. I'm not the Crown Prince and I definitely shouldn't be here.”

“I'm afraid I don't understand.”

“This is- this is not my home. Not where I should be. I should be with my mother Hunith in Ealdor. Not here, in Prince Arthur's rooms ready to do princely things.”

“That's strange.”

“Yes, very.”

“It's strange because you mentioned a woman, Hunith of Ealdor-”

“Yes, my mother.”

“And I do believe she has a kid named Arthur.”

“Ye- wait, what? Arthur? As in Prince Arthur?”

“Sire, you are the prince.”

“I am most certainly not!”

“Yes, your father is the King Uther Pendragon and your mother was the late Ygraine Dubois.”

“Yeah, no, see, that's Arthur. My mother is Hunith and my father- well, I never knew my father. But I've always lived in Ealdor. I only came to Camelot last week because of the Commoner's Banquet.”

“But that's in a month's time.”

“A mon- It was yesterday!”

“I'm going to have to examine you for a head injury, I'm afraid.”

“I'm not-”

“Excuse me, my lord. Your father requests your presence.”

“Tell the King that Merlin has to stay in his chambers under the physician's orders.”

“Of course.”

“Tell me more about this...life you claim to have.”

***

“Arthur, dear, the sun is already out.”

“Ouch, my back hurts.”

“I've told you to take my bed a thousand times, but you never listen, love.”

“Wh- what is this? Where am I?”

“What do you mean? We're home, honey, in Ealdor.”

“Ealdor? That where Merlin's from.”

“Who?”

“Merlin.”

“Merlin? As in Prince Merlin?”

“Prince Mer- what?”

“Yes, the son of King Uther Pendragon of Camelot. Are you okay, my child?”

“I don't think so.”

“I think you need a big breakfast to sober you up.”

“Well, yes, I am quite hungry.”

“See? Your mother knows you well.”

“My mo-”

“Here.”

Tries it, spits it out.

Are you okay, my boy?”

“Wha-what is this?”

“Porridge.”

“I c-can't eat that.”

“Are you sick?”

“Maybe.”

“Oh dear, let me prepare a warm soup for you. Or maybe some stew. Let's see if we have any meat left from the hunting session last week, hold up.”

“Alright.”

Looking around, Arthur found that he didn't understand what was going on. The place felt completely strange to him, a humble little village he was sure didn't lay within Camelot's borders. But if so, where could it be? The thought of his conversation with Merlin the previous night came to his mind.

This could be his village. And that woman, Hunith, was his mother.

But why was he there, so far away from Camelot and how had he gotten there in only a day?

It must have been sorcery, Arthur knew, there was no other possible explanation.

But what exactly was the curse? A spell to make him leave the palace? That couldn't be it, it wouldn't serve any real purpose. Besides, the woman had thought Arthur was her son and she had called Merlin the Prince of Camelot. So they had what? Switched places? It sounded ridiculous, but it was the only thing that made sense

Hunith came back cutting his musings short.

“Lucky for you, there was still some squirrel left.” Well, that didn't sound appealing, but he could do little else but nod.

“When's the next Commoner's banquet?” he asked.

“I believe it's in a month or so. Us going was going to be a surprise. But as always, you got ahead of yourself.”

“I didn't-”

“Either that or Will told you.”

“Umm.”

“There's my answer. Well, you have a couple of free hours now before you have to help me bring wood for the fire. We should have enough in the back, but if we don't you can always ask Old Man Simmons. Then you have to help Will with the harvest. I expect you to be back before sundown.”

“I- alright. I'll do that.”

Stepping outside, Arthur could do little but marvel at the foreign feel of everything before him. He was used to large stone hallways and wooden furniture adorned with the most exquisite of carvings. Instead, he was surrounded by mud and small houses with roughly thatched roofs, and the stench of livestock was soon to fill his lungs.

Merlin had been right. He wouldn't be able to stand this.

He had to get back to Camelot.

He walked along the path, towards what he supposed to be the west if the sun's position was any indication. But he was intercepted by a tackle hug.

“Hey Wart, coming to help with the harvest?” _Ah, this must be Will then._

“Yeah, I guess.”

“I know you'd rather do anything else but Hunith would kick both our arses if we didn't get it done. And my mother would surely kick me out and I don't really fancy sleeping in the cold.”

“Yeah, doesn't sound too comfortable.”

“Yep! So let's get this done, shall we?”

  
  
  


***

“What do you think?” “You don't believe me, do you?”

“It's certainly strange that you remember things in such detail, but I can't help but be sceptical. I'm sorry, my boy.”

“It's okay, I get it. I don't know what's going on either so expecting you to would be hypocritical.”

“Well, until we figure it out I'm afraid life must go on.”

“But I don't know what to do, Gaius.”

“What?”

“I'm not a Prince, I can't do princely things.”

“I hadn't thought about that.”

“What would I be doing normally at this time.”

“Training, I believe.”

“Training?!? Like with swords?!?”

“I gather you don't know how to do that."

“No, I do not.”

Knock.

“Sire. The knights were wondering if you would be heading down to the training field.”

Merlin remembered him from the feast. He'd been the one who had led him to the room, accompanying him with pleasant conversation and distinct pleasantness. He also remembered Arthur's disposition when he talked to him. He seemed relaxed and open, more so than with the other guests.

Leon.

That was his name.

“Sorry, Sir Leon, but I'm not feeling my best and I'm afraid Gaius is keeping me here today, aren't you, Gaius?”

“Ah, yes, I'm afraid so.”

“I trust that you can lead the training today and possibly tomorrow if I continue to feel indisposed.”

“Of course, my lord. Is there anything in particular you'd want us to work on?”

Ah, yes. That was another question.

“Um, I believe they could work on defence.”

“Just tactics in general or shield work?”

“I trust you to decide that.”

“Thank you for the vote of confidence, my lord."

“I wouldn't give it to you if I didn't believe you were capable.”

“Are you sure you're not the prince? That sounded like you."

“I remember him from the feast and I know I can trust him."

“Yes, Sir Leon is a great man.”

***

Will led Arthur to the small quadrant of land they were going to be preparing that day.

Or, well, he was going to be preparing apparently because as soon as they got there Will told him that he had other things to do and he left him alone and very confused.

He presumed he was supposed to know what to do at that point, it was probably common knowledge in a town like this one where these types of plantations were a main source of food.

And yet, he had absolutely no idea what he was meant to be doing because, to put it plainly, he had never in his life seen something like this. He had seen fields before, sure, but usually when they were already planted and almost ready for harvest. Therefore, he had no clue as to where to start with the task.

First, he would need some sort of tool, he thought. He might not have known how to do it but even he wasn't so dumb as to try to prepare the land with his own bare hands.

He approached the small wooden shed and took a look inside. Indeed it was as he thought, the place had the equipment that was likely used for the purpose he wanted.

The next problem was to choose which tool to use.

Looking back at the patch of land, he thought that perhaps there should be some kind of hole to plant seeds in. He looked back at the tools and thought it over for a second.

He grabbed the shovel.

At least he knew what _that_ was.

He made his way back to the soil and got to work.

After an hour he looked at what he'd done and confidently thought that despite not knowing what ready-to-be-planted land was supposed to look like, this was _definitely_ not it.

This was only confirmed when a woman, presumably Will's mom, came over.

“Oh, child! What have you done?”

“I-”

She sighed, “Your mother told me you weren't feeling well. I should have listened to her since you're clearly in no condition to do this now.” He tried to protest, but she interrupted again, “Go home and rest. We'll talk about how you can fix it another day."

And with that, she was gone and Arthur had no choice but to go back home.

  
  


***

“I know it sounds crazy, but I don't know what to do.”

“Yes, well. For now, you're going to have to act like a prince.”

“But I don't know how to do that!”

“Excuse me, sire, but the King expects you to dine with him and the Lady Morgana.”

“Guess you'll have to learn fast.”

The servant walked a very panicked Merlin to the room in complete silence that would have been uncomfortable if Merlin's mind hadn't been reeling like it was.

“Merlin. I heard you weren't feeling well. I'm assuming Gaius took care of that.”

“Yes, though I'm still not feeling my best.”

“Well, I trust that you can dine with us nonetheless.”

“Of course.”

He sat at the table, which was filled with the same wonders as last night but, this time, Merlin wasn’t hungry. Across from him sat the beautiful lady from the ball. The Lady Morgana, he remembered, the King’s ward. She was eyeing him with equal parts concern and amusement and Merlin just prayed she wouldn’t realize there was something amiss.

“Gaius told me you didn’t go to training this morning.”

“Wha- No, I didn’t.”

“I assume you’ll be going soon, you should be in optimum shape when Lord Bayard and the envoy from Mercia arrive next week”

“I should think I’ll be alright by then.”

“You better make a good impression, especially after last time, ” Morgana said.

“Last time?”

“Yes, when you spilt wine on top of him.” Merlin felt the colour rush to his face because that did sound like something he would do.

“I-’

“That will not be repeated of course. But I expect the best behaviour from you too, Morgana. After all, last time you had an altercation with one of the knights.”

“I would hardly call it an altercation. He was being rude and I just thought that a little duel wouldn’t do any harm.”

“You did not only best him in combat, but he was unable to move for a week.” Merlin snorted. ‘You shouldn’t find this amusing! It almost cost us the treaty!”

“No, sire. Not funny.”

‘Well, this time we’ll be negotiating over the reinforcement of the ban on magic, so you better be proper.”

Merlin choked on his food.

“Are you alright?”

“Umm, yes. I just-”

“You're still not well. You should retire.”

“But-”

“I won't hear it. Rest.”

“Yes, sire.”

He stood up and left, mind reeling and shaking at the new information he’d just received. He’d known before, of course, that magic was banned in the kingdom, but it had slipped his mind completely with all that had happened in the last few hours. Now he was supposed to be the prince of a Kingdom where magic was punishable by death when he was magic himself.

“You don't look too good,” came a voice from behind him.

“My lady.”

“Oh, come on, Merlin. Since when do you call me that?”

“To be honest, I have no clue.”

“Are you alright? I'm serious, you look like you haven't slept in a week.”

“I...I don't know.”

“You know you can talk to me, right?”

“You wouldn't believe me even if I told you.”

“Really? Try me.”

***

“Oh, Arthur! You're back already? Is everything alright?” Hunith asked when Arthur walked through the door. 

_No_ , he wanted to say. _Nothing is alright. I'm stuck here in a house that's not my own living a life that I cannot control because it's unknown to me._

Instead, he said, “I'm just not feeling good enough to keep working today.”

“Oh, child. Rest then,” she said and gestured for him to sit down. “It's my fault anyway. I knew you were not feeling great and I still sent you out to work.”

“It's okay, really.”

“No, it's not,” she said. “I'm your mother and I should know better. It's my job to take care of you after all.

The word mother hit him harder than it should have. He'd never had a mother and his father wasn't the warmest man in the world, so Arthur's childhood had been dull and devoid of affection. It had been comfortable, yes. He never lacked anything after all. But he sometimes wished he could have traded all of those luxuries and commodities for a simple hug.

It seemed that life was giving him a chance now.

“Come here, dear,” Hunith said and Arthur slipped into her embrace easily. 

He thought then that maybe, maybe he could get through this. Maybe it wasn't that bad. 

“I'm going to bring some wood from the back to start a fire.”

“I can do that.”

“You shouldn't, you're unwell.”

“Not that unwell. Besides, I will do it faster.”

She smiled, “Alright. But no more running around after that. Only eating and resting.”

“I'll try,” he said and went to the back where the firewood was stored.

He brought a few logs back inside and sat down. They started a fire and then he sat in comfortable silence while she cooked. All in all, his first day hadn't been that bad.

***

“So you're not the Prince.”

“No.”

“But you woke up and you were the Prince.”

“Yes.”

“And the real Prince is presumably in your house in a small village of Essetir.”

“Yeah."

“How do you even get into this sort of mess?”

“I don't know,” Merlin said truthfully. “But you believe me.”

“Yes, well, I don't think anyone could come up with this sort of thing.”

“Hmm,” he agreed.

“But how could you have swapped places? It has to be some sort of magic.”

The realization dawned on him.

“Oh no.”

“What?"

“Fuck.”

“What is it?”

“Magic is outlawed.”

“...yeah? Your point?”

“Bloody hell.”

Morgana's eyes widened.

“Oh my god. You have magic, don't you?”

“Please don't say anything.”

“I won't! But how the hell did you end up in Camelot of all places?”

“Ugh.”

“If Uther found out that his son has magic-”

“He won't. He can't.”

“I bet his face would be priceless-”

“Morgana!”

“What? Just imagine the mighty King Uther Pendragon of Camelot having a sorcerer for a son.”

“Warlock.”

“What?”

“Warlock, technically. I was born with it.”

“Oh that's- that's even better.”

“I don't know what to do.”

“I think all you can do for now is try to act like a Prince and pray for the best.”

“How do I do that though? I don't know what Princes do.”

“I guess I'll have to teach you then.”

***

The rest of the day passed fast, though not as much as Arthur would have liked. At lunch, he'd tried to eat some of the stew that Hunith had prepared and while it wasn't the worst, he hadn't gotten much down, being too preoccupied with his situation to care about eating.

He had regretted this later, however, when he was presented a plate of paste that seemed to be made of grains and cereals that had caused Arthur's stomach immediately.

So he went to sleep with an empty stomach and a busy mind and that was never a good combination.

Luckily, the exhaustion of the emotionally draining day took over him and he couldn't even be bothered by the cold hard floor under him, falling asleep in minutes.

***

“No, you can't just walk up to the King of a neighbouring kingdom and tell him he's starving his people.”

“You haven't been there! Everyone that doesn't live immediately next to the castle doesn't have enough resources to survive and it gets worse in the winter.”

“Yes, but you can't just say that to Bayard. He would surely go to war.”

“I guess.”

“You should also now before kings and princes and kiss queens and princesses' hands.”

“Okay…”

“And you have to be careful with the titles you use. The first time you address them it's Your Majesty or Your Highness. After that, it's sire or my lord or lady. Sir and the first name for knights. Also depending on the position certain lords have in court they could be Your Excellency or Your Grace-”

“I can't remember all of that!”

“We shall leave this for now. I have to make some diplomatic rounds and you have a council meeting first thing.”

“A what?!? I can't do that, I don't know what to do, I don't understand anything, I have to-”

“Just try your best not to annoy Uther too much.”

“Ugh.”

***

After the disaster in the fields the first day, Arthur had dedicated himself to doing some housework, helping Hunith where he could during the next few days. He carried things for her and helped her clean and make food. She was patient with him and would explain the things Arthur didn't know how to do. If she found her son's sudden memory loss a bit weird, she knew better than to press him for answers he wasn't ready to give.

  
  


The mixtures of grains and vegetables they used to eat were becoming more bearable as time went on, though they weren't close to the meals he was used to having as the Crown Prince. He remembered being at supper with his father on multiple occasions and not wanting to eat just because he was mad at the king and felt like it was a way to communicate that. Now, he swore that when he got back, he would never refuse to eat again, even if it meant having to be in his best behaviour for his father or having to deal with Morgana's sharp comments for a few hours.

  
  


If I get back, he didn't think. 

***

It turned out, as Merlin was quick to learn, that council meetings sucked.

or maybe they didn’t, but Merlin wasn’t really understanding enough of this one to cast a proper judgement. It started with a bunch of people arguing about crops and materials and land portions and had now gone on to speak of...well, Merlin had no idea really.

“We could take the route through the White Mountains. That way we would avoid detection.”

“But the risk is too high.”

“Not as much as going through the Valley of the Fallen Kings.”

“But that would cut travel time almost in half.”

“Yes, but no one in their right mind would go through there.”

“Merlin, what do you think?”

“Wha- me?” Everyone looked at him expectantly. “I...do we really have to go to battle?”

The king rolled his eyes and went back to the discussion. Merlin had the feeling that those words hadn't been what he'd wanted to hear.

***

Arthur hadn't done quite this much introspecting in his life, he realized. Usually, he was too busy and always surrounded by people, never having a moment to breathe let alone sit down to think.

Now, alone and with days filled with manual labour, he could do little else.

He soon noticed that he couldn't keep skipping meals, no matter how much he disliked the food. They didn't have much opportunity to get meat or other more costly and hard to get products, so they had to work with what they were able to grow. There also wasn't much of it, so wasting it made him feel worse and worse every time until he ate it out of pure guilt.

After a while, he was so hungry that the flavour of what he was eating didn't matter as long as he was getting something in his stomach. The food was certainly something he could get used to after a while.

Another thing that he found surprisingly different was the clothes. Arthur wasn't one for wearing fancy tunics often, so the ones he owned were fairly simple. However, the one's he used here we're far coarser and thicker. He never noticed the material of the one's he owned back in Camelot but he could say that it wasn't nearly as itchy as this one.

Whatever, he thought. He could also deal with less fine clothes for some time.

He also realized after a few days that he couldn't keep taking the bed. Hunith wasn't old, but she wasn't a young woman either and he wasn't about to tell Medlin that he made his mother sleep on the floor for a month.

So he moved to the floor, and it was absolutely miserable. He was obviously used to the luxuriously soft bed of the Royal chambers, but that felt already very far away. The smaller wooden bed, though not the most comfortable, had still been bearable enough to at least get some hours of sleep in.

The floor wasn't like this at all. It was cold and hard and humid even through the bedroom. He was shivering even when he moved closer to the fire. He couldn't believe he had made Hunith sleep like this for days. He didn't even know if he could make it through one night this way.

One of the things he wondered was how Merlin would be doing in his place. Arthur wasn't a fool, he knew it was his life he was living, the home he was staying in, his family he was claiming as his own. So the logical conclusion would be that Merlin was in his place. A snort escaped him at the thought of Merlin being the Crown Prince. Loud, passionate, impulsive Merlin who was more emotion than thought, who cared too deeply for his own good. He could imagine that his father wouldn't be happy and that Morgana would be all too pleased, but he couldn't help but harbour the hole that he would take good care of his kingdom.

It was ridiculous, Arthur thought, how deeply he had fallen for the man after only a few hours of knowing him, and how much they'd learned about each other. 

  
  


He missed him.

  
  


_Ridiculous_ , he thought once more.

  
  


_You better be alright._

***

“Sire, your sword.”

“Yes, of course, my sword.”

He grabbed it and was immediately dragged down by the weight of it. He tried to brush it off, but Leon was already looking at him, eyebrows knitted together. Merlin tried giving a reassuring nod that fell a bit short by the knight's expression, but Leon got into a fighting stance nonetheless. Merlin tried to mimic him as best as he could, but as soon as he got into position, all his confidence fled him. He didn't know how to fight. His arms were too weak for such a heavy weapon and having to hold a shield with his other hand wasn't helping matters. Any strength he might have had before entering the training field left him and only tremors and fear remained.

He prepared for the first blow when Leon lowered his weapon.

“Are you feeling alright, sire? Would you rather train with the mace instead?”

Merlin looked at the weapon rack and saw a metal spiked horror that looked even harder to control than the sword now in his hand.

“I-” he sighed. “I think it would be for the best if you took over training today.”

Leon bowed and said, “Sire.”

Merlin carefully laid his sword with the other training equipment and made his way back into the castle.

Once he was in the safety of his chambers he broke down. Everything felt foreign to him; from the softness of the silk against his skin to the way the sunlight entered through the window in the morning the weight of a sword in his belt and later in his hand. 

This wasn't where he was supposed to be. What would be of his mother?. And how would Arthur be doing?

Was this what having a breakdown felt like?

He needed to follow Morgana's advice if he wanted to keep himself together, but that certainly wasn't proving to be simple.

“My lord, the King asked me to remind you of the Mercian envoy that will be arriving tomorrow.”

And apparently, it was about to get harder.

***

He wasn't fidgeting, not at all. 

Okay, maybe he was. But in his defence, he was standing in front of the gates of Camelot dressed in very uncomfortable but probably very expensive clothing while waiting for a King to arrive when he was completely unprepared to deal with him. So, he had a reason to be so nervous.

And the Bayard arrived.

He looked frantically all around to at least try to understand what he was supposed to do when confronted by a King. He also tried to remember Morgana's lessons, but his memory was failing him miserably at the moment.

“Uther Pendragon, it’s very nice to see you after all this time. I trust everything is well.”

“Yes, of course. I shall tell you everything over dinner.”

“Prince Merlin,” Bayard said with a court nod.

“Your Majesty,” Merlin responded. He remembered that much at least.

“Ah, I believe you haven’t been introduced to lady Myria.” The woman in question was a young lady, probably around Merlin’s age, small and pretty, looking ahead as would be expected of an elegant woman of the court. Her green eyes burned into Merlin’s skin and her smile was inviting.

Merlin had the gnawing suspicion that he was forgetting something important.

An elbow to his ribs broke him out of his stupor. Thank god for Morgana.

He grabbed the lady’s hand hopefully looking more confident than he felt and kissed the back of it. Lady Myria’s eyes filled with embarrassment and amusement and a hint of something else that, quite frankly, Merlin didn’t wish to know.

Uther spoke again, “Now that proper introductions have been made, let us go inside. It has been a long journey for all of you and you might want to see your chambers.”

“Ah yes,” Bayard said, “Thank you for your hospitality, old friend.”

Soon after the castle’s servants led the envoy to their respective rooms, Merlin got a call to the throne room.

“Your Majesty, is everything alright?”

“Merlin, is everything alright? I wanted you to make a good impression on King Bayard after the last time and all you did was stand there as if you had never met him before. And Lady Myria! You should know to treat her better. She would be a great political match for you.”

“My Lord! I-”

“I don’t want to hear it! You will be on your best behaviour at dinner today or you will hear from me again. Dismissed.”

Feeling dejected, Merlin left the room only to stumble upon someone, almost falling over.

“Sorry!” he said, looking up to meet Lady Myria’s wide eyes

she smiled sheepishly and said, “It’s alright, I’m fine,” tucking a few of the dark curls of her hair behind her ear.

He tried smiling back and turned to leave, but her arm shot to grab his elbow, locking him in place. She certainly was stronger than Merlin.

“Sorry, I was wondering if…My Lord would care to show me around the castle.”

Shit, he couldn’t say no to that.

“Ah, yes of course. But I- I’m afraid it must be after supper. I have some things to attend to right now.”

“Oh, yes of course! I wouldn’t be adverse to taking a night stroll.”

“Me neither,” he lied and then ll but ran to Morgana’s chambers, knocking on the door repeatedly.

“Morgana, help,” he said, hoping that would coax her out of the room.

and indeed it did because she opened the door with a smirk decorating her crimson-stained lips, “What is it?”

“Lady Myria.”

“Ah, yes, I forgot to tell you she might want to get your attention.”

“She’s not the problem at all, she seems lovely actually but I don’t- I can’t- and Uther wants me to-”

“Yes, well, getting you to court her and marrying into our kingdom would be the best way to secure an alliance. Uther knows that, so don't think you're getting out of it that easy.”

“Maybe she doesn’t want it though? hopefully?

“Did she ask you to show her around?”

“...yes?” 

“Then she’s definitely interested.”

“But I don't like her at all! I'm in love with A-” He clasped both of his hands over his mouth.

“With who?”

“Nevermind.”

“No, no Merlin. You were going to say, Arthur.” Uncomfortable silence. “If you preferred men, you just had to say so, ” Morgana said with a satisfied grin on her face.

“Uther would have a fit if he knew, ” Merlin sighed.

“Oh, for sure. But he wouldn't really be able to do much about it. You're supposed to marry to strengthen the kingdom anyways, not for love. So a thing like who you're attracted to wouldn't really be a factor in consideration.”

“Look, I'm not marrying anyone soon. I'm not even supposed to be a prince, so please, let's not talk about this.”

“It's okay, Merlin. I'm not judging you, you know that, right? It would be very hypocritical of me.”

“Hypo-” The door opened, revealing Gwen carrying a bundle of clothes.

“My lady, your clothes for the night.”

“Thank you, Gwen. You can leave it over there, I'll call you to help me with them in a minute,” she said with a face full of warmth and fondness.

Gwen bowed, returning the smile, and left the room.

“Oh.”

“Shut up.”

“No, no. I get it. She's a great woman.”

Morgana nodded enthusiastically.

“She is. She's better than all of us put together and you can bet that I would rather leave Camelot than allow Uther to touch a hair on her head.”

“Oh trust me, I believe you.” He suppressed a full-body shiver at just how much he believed her. “But I need your help to know how to shake off Lady Myria.”

“Okay, let's see…”

***

Once they had all gathered around the long table of the dinner hall, Merlin didn’t have to do much in terms of conversation. Morgana did her best trying to include him without overwhelming him and Uther and Bayard were too occupied discussing their respective kingdoms to pay any mind to his obvious discomfort. 

Lady Myria’s eyes didn’t leave him once and he almost felt bad for how awkward that made him feel. She seemed wonderful, really. She was sweet and king and easy to talk to. He could easily engage her in interesting conversation topics, but besides his general feeling of not fitting into the world of the court, he also had the underlying weight of Uther’s desire for him to court her over his shoulders. And the fact that he felt no attraction whatsoever towards her and that he was very much already in love didn’t help matters.

Regardless of this, dinner went fairly smoothly, ignoring Bayards suspiciously eyeing him at the end of the night. 

The King and the lady seemed ready to retire for the night, but then she turned and said, “Oh, is it still okay to go through with our plans from earlier? I don’t want to force you out for a walk if you’re too tired, my lord.”

“No, it’s alright. Some fresh air will do me good.”

“Great! I shall retrieve a cloak from my rooms and then I’ll meet you in the courtyard.”

“Of course,” and with that she turned away and left the room.

Uther approached him and said to him, “Merlin, she's rather beautiful, isn't she?”

“I guess…”

“Look, I know you are still young. But forging an alliance this early would be most convenient-”

“No!” he snapped, feeling anger coil in his gut and making his blood boil.

“What?”

“I won't marry her! I cannot marry without love.” Uther scoffed

“Don't be ridiculous, son. Of course, you shall marry without love. Your union has to be strategic. It doesn't have to be Lady Myria, but perhaps Princess Mithian of Nemeth-”

“I'm sure she's wonderful, but no thank you, ” he said and left the room.

He wasn’t sure where his feet were carrying him until he stopped in the hallway at the sound of a door opening.

“Oh, Prince Merlin! I thought I said I would meet you in the courtyard. You didn’t have to come to my room to escort me.”

“I know, I just thought it would be the right thing to do,” he lied with terrifying ease.

She blushed a pretty color and said, “Thank you, that’s very kind of you, my lord.”

They walked outside to the courtyard and around the gardens in silence. Merlin didn’t really know what to say and to be fair, he wasn’t in the best of moods either. Obviously Lady Myria noticed this because she said, “I fear you do not enjoy my company.”

“No!” he was quick to deny “It’s not that! It’s just...i’m tired from today and I,” he took a deep breath, thinking he at least owed her the truth for being such bad company “I fought with the King earlier.”

“Ah, that explains it. King Uther can be quite terrifying.”

“He certainly can.”

“You would think as his son you would be used to it.”

“Trust me, I don’t think I ever could get used to it.” At that she chuckled, easing the previous tension a little.

After that, their silence was much more comfortable and they both retired to their rooms after.

The next morning he was awoken by sharp knocks at his door. Before he even could answer, Morgana barged in closing the door shut behind her.

“i cannot believe you truly walked with her yesterday! You shouldn’t lead her on if you have no intention of courting her, you know that, right?”

“Yes, of course. I wasn’t trying to do that. She asked me to show her around and I did, that’s all. She’s good company at least.”

“Yes, and Uther seemed happy at your gesture.”

“Ugh, I told him I’m not going to marry her.’

“Yes, but that doesn’t mean he’ll stop hoping.”

“Stubborn old man.”

“That’s the King you’re talking about, Merlin.”

“Yes and I’m right and you know it.”

She didn’t say anything, but her smirk and her silence were telling enough.

***

  
  


He heard screams coming from the hallway and he decided to go look, even though he seriously doubted he would be able to do something in the face of any real threat.

“-m sorry, Sir! I didn't want to, I swear-” A loud slap resonated through the lard hallways of the castle, and Merlin stopped dead in his tracks.

“You will not speak out if turn again”

That riled him up.

“What's happening here?!?” The knight immediately lowered his hand and Merlin helped the servant from the floor.

“My Lord, it is nothing you shall concern yourself with. I was simply putting her in her place.”

“What for, exactly?”

“She dropped her pitcher on my clothes and I was supposed to attend the meeting today. Now I'll be late since I'm forced to change.”

“And that gives you the right to hit her?”

“Excuse me?”

“You heard me. Why did you think you could mistreat one of Camelot's servants like this? Oh, that's right! Because you're an arrogant arse that has no idea what it is to work day and night because you were born covered in gold. Well, guess what? You will apologize to the lady immediately or I will see that you're banished from Camelot myself.”

The knight was flabbergasted. 

“Sire, I don't-”

“No, you don't. You don't have anything to say. So shut up and apologize.”

The knight lowered his head and muttered a reluctant apology under his breath.

“I'm sorry.”

“I-it's alright,” the girl said.

“You may leave.”

And the man ran away like the coward he was.

“Your Highness, thank you so much. I’m sorry, I-”

“There’s no need to apologize,” Merlin cut in. “he was wrong in hitting you.”

“But I did dirty his clothes…”

“Still. That doesn’t justify hitting someone like this. No one should-”

“Your Highness,” another servant interrupted, “the king requires your presence in the throne room.” 

Oh, that wasn’t good.

“I guess I have to leave now,” he said, and walked away.

By the time he actually got to the throne room, Uther was about to make a hole in the ground. Or break something. Or kill someone. Merlin hoped it wasn’t the latter.

“What were you thinking treating one of our guests like that?!? You could have caused a war! All for a measly servant!”

Oh no, please someone tell him this wasn’t going where he thought it was going.

“He hurt her!”

“And?!?”

The flippancy shook Merlin to the core.

“And? She didn't deserve it!”

“She's just a servant! Nothing more! She is worth nothing next to a knight!”

Now that really pissed him off.

“Nothing?!? In my eyes she is a citizen of Camelot as much as anyone else and even though you think they are less deserving of our protection I swore to keep them all safe regardless of rank. I will not stand and see one of my people mistreated just because of prejudice!”

Uther didn’t raise his voice, instead he met his eyes with a cold gaze.

“You dare defy me so?”

“I do, ” he said, raising his head even more.

“Very well then. Guards!”

The guards entered the council chambers.

“Take him to the dungeons.”

The men exchanged a look, but soon grabbed Merlin's arms and started to drag him off. But Merlin shrugged off their grip.

“Don't,” he said, still staring at Uther. “I'll walk.” And with a flick of his cape, he walked away.

***

The dungeons, all things considered, weren’t that bad. they weren’t ideal to spend a long period of time in, but it wasn’t as bad or as cold as Ealdor could get in the winter. He also knew that he was guaranteed some food, which was more than he was used to there.

Speaking of that.

“Food for the prisoner, ” he heard a familiar voice say and he raised his head to see Gwen walking into the cell. He couldn't help but smile at her comforting presence. “Oh, Merlin.”

“It's okay, Gwen.”

“It's not. Uther had no right to do this.”

“Be careful with what you say.”

“Alina asked me to thank you and that she's very sorry for causing such a disagreement.” That must be the name of the serving girl, Merlin realized. He felt bad at not knowing it, having seen her around before, but it was too late to do anything about it now.

“Tell her she's not done anything to be sorry for and make sure she goes to Gaius to ensure that she doesn't have any injuries.”

“I will,” Gwen said with a soft look in her eyes. “You're a good man, Merlin. Us servants are very grateful.”

Merlin shook his head, “You shouldn't be, I've done nothing more than what is right.”

“And that is already more than anyone has ever done. Thank you, truly.”

He smiled and nodded.

“I have to leave to serve my mistress.”

“Of course.”

Gwen courtesyed and left the cell.

Merlin dug into the food and concluded that if this was his punishment for doing what he had to do, then nothing was stopping him from doing it.

***

After a night and a day in the cells, Merlin was released, though not without a harsh reprimand from Uther that Merlin had to bite his tongue to not reply to. Margana was waiting for home with an amused smirk and some words that, were she anyone else, would have surely gotten her in serious trouble. But she wasn't so Merlin just laughed, appreciating her support.

He immediately decided to take a walk through the lower town, feeling an indescribable urge to be out of the castle, as the walls seemed to be closing in on him.

His father agreed and said that Morgana should tag along, which she readily agreed to, dragging Gwen into it as well. Uther however thought that the presence of a knight would be required and so Merlin took no time in asking for Leon. The man was the only person besides the girls that he knew he could trust. 

And so the four of them left the suffocating lavishness of the palace for a day in the humble outskirts of the citadel. Merlin thought in the corner of his mind that even those places were a luxury compared to his life in Ealdor and his heart suddenly asked him what would be of Arthur there. He truly hoped he was doing okay.

His melancholic musings were cut short as they reached the forge. Gwen left Morgana's side to hug the man working.

“Gwen! I didn't expect to see you today.”

“Lady Morgana and Prince Merlin decided to take a walk today.”

The smith acknowledged them with a bow and a polite smile.

“It's nice to see you, ” Morgana said.

“My Lady.”

“I hope life is treating you well, Tom.”

“Your Highness, ” Tom responded to Merlin's good wishes, looking at a loss.

“I'm afraid Gwen will have to leave now, but we'll return her soon, I promise.”

Gwen smiled and left her father's side with a parting kiss on the cheek.

“I'm surprised you remembered my father's name!”

“Why shouldn't I? You talk about home fairly often.”

“Yeah, I guess I do.”

But Gwen knew, as did Morgana and Leon, that that wasn't just it. Because when Merlin walked through the halls in the castle he didn't just wave or make a head gesture to the servants. He would say “Hey Morris” or “Hello Dina”. He didn't just ask for his lunch, he told his servant “Tell Mary I'm not too hungry today”. For how rarely he had attended training on the last few days, he paid surprising attention to Leon's reports, always asking things like “Did Sir Kay heal from his back injury?” or “I trust that you can help Sir Caradoc with his footwork today since you said it wasn't great yesterday”.

Even now, as they walked through the streets he greeted Laurent the tailor and Garrick the stablehand and the family of Leyra, one of the laundresses of the castle.

“I heard that the serving girl was very thankful for what you did the other day, ” Morgana said.

“Huh? Oh, Alina? She didn't deserve to be treated like that, no matter the rank of the other person, ” he responded, proving Morgana correct.

He always remembered people's names, no matter who they were. And she would bet that it wasn't just that. 

But she kept her thoughts to herself, only lightly acknowledging Leon and Gwen's knowing looks and decided to just enjoy their walk for the time being.

***

“Hello.” 

He turned at the voice coming from the door of his chambers.

“Good morning, Morgana. I didn't expect you quite so early,” he set his quill down and stopped writing. “You look tired, did you sleep well last night?”

“I had a nightmare,” she explained but then she shrugged it off saying, “I was just with Uther so I thought that I might as well inform you that he expects you in today's audience sessions.” Merlin groaned.

“Ugh, what? I thought he didn't want me anywhere near any official business.”

“He must have changed his mind,” Morgana said with a smirk

“I bet he didn't and he just wants to punish me more for what happened the other day.”

“Perhaps. But you're still expected, so you better go soon or he might get angrier at you.”

“If that is even possible.”

“I assure you that with Uther, it is.” Merlin snorted.

“Great, well, let's go.”

***

Sitting on the throne for an audience session was more intimidating that Merlin would have ever imagined. Not because of the lengthy line of people that filled the chambers, that was the least of his worries. However, with Uther at his side carefully monitoring his every movement and being under the scrutiny of King Bayard and Lady Myria who still appeared to consider marrying him was an option, he was feeling quite under pressure.

So when the first girl approached the throne, he was just thinking about what his best way to escape would be without ending up in the dungeons again.

“My Lord, my name is Jen. After the attack on the outskirts of my town, our houses were destroyed and we don't have what we need to fix it. We can barely survive as is, and we have nothing to get us through the winter.”

Merlin had heard about that. A group of bandits had been terrorizing villages along the kingdom for weeks, destroying and stealing everything they came across. The problem was that with that amount of attacks, the amount of men they would need to send to help would be extremely high and it could be a problem if the city of Camelot was attacked.

Uther certainly thought so because he said, “There were many attacks in that area around the same time, we can't send people to help you right now. Next.”

“Wait! Do your people know how to fix the structures?”

Everyone turned to look at Merlin warily, but he paid it no mind. He truly believed he might know how to solve this.

“Yes, we just don't have the resources,” the woman said.

“We still can't spare those materials.”

“Not without getting something in exchange,” Merlin said.

“What are you suggesting?”

“We can’t leave those places unprotected for long since the winter is approaching, so we’ll have to spare those materials eventually. If we divided the resources carefully now and we put some men on the task of taking it we could definitely repair all the damage to the outlying villages before the first snows of the season. Since the problem would be the men that would have to be sent to help them, we could instead give them the materials in exchange for the labour. Also, they could work on giving back a quarter of what we give them when spring comes again. That way, we shouldn't have any issues.”

Uther considered this.

“What about the transportation of the materials? Making all those trips to each of the towns would take just as much time as helping them directly and we can’t have our men away from the citadel for so long.”

“Do not make that many trips then. One would suffice.”

“How?”

“Leave it all in the first village. Since they are going to be helping their neighbours with the construction they could just carry it to them instead of having to make their way back and forth from the citadel.”

“Huh,” King Bayard, who was listening in to the exchange with avid interest said. “Do you think everyone would agree to those terms?”

“Yes, my Lord.”

“Then that's settled, ” the King said.

“Thank you.”

And with that, the woman left and the next person in line came forward.

“I believe my wife is cheating on me with the carpenter.”

“That is a serious accusation you're making. Are you sure?” the King asked.

“I am."

Merlin's disease grew at the certainty with which he said this.

“May I ask who your wife is?”

The man nodded and responded, “Triss, my lord she-”

“Is one of the kitchen maids in the castle, I know. And you're making these accusations based on what evidence?” Merlin asked.

“These last two weeks she's been sneaking out of the house late at night trying to escape my notice. Last night I followed her and saw her in friendly conversation with him.”

“Very suspicious of a lady to do that late at night,” Uther remarked, but Merlin wasn't convinced.

“Indeed,” he said. “May I ask you when the day of your birth is?”

“In two days, sire.” 

He nodded.

“That's what I thought.”

“I don't quite follow,” the man said.

Uther also spoke, “Me neither.”

So Merlin explained, “Yesterday I went on a walk through the lower town and met the Carpenter, Justin, after a while. I inquired about his job and he kindly responded that he'd spent the last two weeks helping a young maiden make a gift for her husband. Now, the nature of this gift is not my place to reveal but I would surely say it shall be a pleasant surprise. For the time being, I think you should go back to your wife and apologize for thinking so badly of her. I truly doubt she'd ever betray you.”

“Y-yes, my lord.”

The man turned around and left as fast as possible, face ref.

“How did you know that?” King Bayard asked him.

“Hmm, what?"

“That she was innocent?”

“I know Triss. She often sneaks more food onto my plate because she believes I'm too thin for a royal. She's sweet and kind,” Merlin said, smiling at the thought.

“You are the crown prince, Merlin. You shouldn't concern yourself with kitchen maids,” Uther started, but quickly backed off after Bayard shout him a glare, “However, it served us this time, so I'll let it go”

But it wasn't the last time it happened, the pattern repeated itself. A person would come to say what troubled them and Merlin would have a solution. He may have not been good at politics or training, but he was good with people and he understood their struggles. Uther was, to say the least, baffled by such an ability, since he had no idea about the switch. Morgana, however, was just glad her hunch had been right. If she'd asked Uther to let Merlin be present at the session and he had not been able to help, it would have been embarrassing. But Morgana was rarely wrong, and this time was not one of those. After spending time with this new Merlin, she had realized how in tune with people he was, how he cared for them and how he truly had an interest in their problems. So it was the obvious conclusion to make that he'd be good at this.

She had never been so glad to be right.

***

“My Lord.”

“Yes, Leon?” he said to the knight, who had just entered his chambers.

“I was wondering if you'd come to training today.”

Merlin's shoulders slumped in defeat. He knew he should be overseeing training now that Bayard was here and that by not doing so he was causing a lot of rumors to spread, but he couldn't help it. He just didn't know how to handle a sword like it was expected of him.

“I don't think that would be wise,” he said with a sigh.

Leon nodded and made do leave, but before he could he said, “Sire, if I may.”

“Of course, what is it?”

“I was thinking that there might be a way for you to train with us. I could show you if you'd like.” Merlin's head snapped up at his words.

“I would really like that, though I don't think it to be possible.”

Leon didn't make to explain himself. Instead he just said, “I'll wait on the training grounds after the drills, ”

Amused, excited and a little terrified, Merlin responded, “Alright, I'll meet you there.”

He spent a few more minutes finishing to read the crop reports for the next council meeting before he called a servant to get dressed in his armor and make his way into the training field.

Leon was already there as he'd said he'd be. He had a rack of weapons next to him, but these were all very different to the ones they usually had.

“What is it you wanted to show me?”

“Well, I noticed that the reason you do not seem to do well with the heavier weapons is because you lack the strength necessary to handle them. Before you say anything, I don't know what happened to make you lose that, but it is of no matter to me.” _Good man,_ Merlin thought. “That strength would come with training, but you can't do that with us without raising suspicion. So, I thought that maybe you could try lighter weapons like knives, daggers or a bow and arrows.”

Merlin considered this.

“Perhaps that could work.”

In front of him there was a display of the most beautiful weapons he had ever seen. He grabbed the bow, made with dark wood and decorated with beautiful carvings, and some arrows and looked at the training dummy that must have been left there after training. 

Leon said, “Here, ” and moved him around into what was probably the correct position. Then he left Merlin alone to shoot.

He aimed at the dummy and tensed the string before letting it go.

He saw the trajectory of the arrow and saw it missing its mark. But before that could happen, everything froze. Merlin felt energy surging through him and pouring onto the arrow, moving it slightly to the left.

It hit the dummy right where his heart would have been.

“Wow! I didn't know you already knew how to do that!”

“I did not,” Merlin blurted out without thinking.

Leon was startled and he said, wide-eyed, “Wha- Then how?”

_If I told you_ , Merlin thought, _if I told you I could be executed._

“I don't know. Luck, I guess.”

If Leon didn't believe him, he certainly didn't say anything. 

The rest of the afternoon went by in a similar manner. Merlin found out that he was good with throwing-knives as well as the bow. He could adjust their path so they hit right on the target. The dagger was a bit harder, but he was small and fast enough to manage to get a few hits in.

By the end of the session he felt sweaty and gross, but also proud of himself.

Leon patted him on the back and congratulated him before he retired for the day.

He took his armor off and asked for a bath.

Once he felt human again, he sat down on his desk and went over some paperwork again.

Before he was interrupted, that is!

“The whole castle is speaking about your archery skills.”

“You exaggerate, Morgana,” he said. Morgana walked in, closing the door behind her and sat on the bed.

“I do not. Everyone said you didn't miss once, ” she said with a smirk on her face. “Now, you've told me you haven't been near a weapon before in your life so how the hell did you manage that?”

“I-”

“And don't even think about lying to me.”

He sighed. _Damn, she was good._

“Magic.”

“What?”

“I used magic. I just took the shot and then slowed time to adjust the aim.”

“Are you telling me that you can just...slow time?”

“...yes?” 

She jumped up, excited, and said, “Can all sorcerers do that?”

“No. Or at least I don't think so. We all have different abilities. Some are good with elemental magic, others with healing magic. Others are seers and they can tell the future. Me…” he took a deep breath. “I am different. I have never had the need to use spells to do magic, and I never learnt how to use it either. It's just part of me, I guess. I've never heard someone being able to do what I can. I sometimes feel like even between sorcerers I am a freak.” 

“First of all, what are you talking about? That sounds incredible! I wish I could do that.”

“I guess…”

“But what else could you do with that ability? It seems very useful.” He shrugged.

“I don't really know, I'd never found a use for it before. It's something that I always had.”

“Well, for now, let's make the most of it. We might still be able to make a decent prince out of you.” Merlin laughed. “Also...how do you know if you're a seer?”

Merlin was taken aback by the question, but he considered it. “I don't know. I am not one, so I can't tell you with certainty. I think that it must be different for different people. I know there are specific objects like crystals that allow some people to see the future. i also believe some can have visions or prophetic dreams, but i wouldn’t be able to tell you how those work.”

“Wait, dreams?” Morgana asked.

“Yes, I think so. Why?”

“Nothing,” she said. “I was just curious, that’s all.”

***

The next day, Merlin was expecting a lot of things. He was not, however, expecting to be approached by King Bayard first thing in the morning.

“Prince Merlin.”

“Your Majesty,” he said and bowed.

“I must confess that when I first arrived, I didn't have a very high opinion of you,” Merlin winced. “You almost forgot to bow when you greeted me, you constantly misused honorifics, you couldn't fight to save your life and you were useless at military strategy.”

He was, of course, aware of all of this. He knew that even with Morgana’s lessons he’d had quite a hard time getting used to all the things that being a prince entailed.

“I-”

“I believed that you were but a shoddy excuse of a prince and that Camelot could be ours for taking with such a weakness,” Merlin had suspected it but hearing it still felt like a physical blow, for he had truly tried his best. And then the unexpected happened again. “But- You proved me wrong.”

“I'm- what?”

“You have been nothing but polite to me and my envoy, except for that incident with my knight which, in hindsight, I must admit you were right to do what you did. You care incredibly for your people, going as far as remembering their names, jobs and struggles and going out of your way to solve them. You are even a much more skilled warrior than you appeared, when using the right weapons.”

“Thank you,” Merlin told him, at a loss for what else to say.

“My point is, you are a great Prince, Merlin, and I can only wait for the moment when you become king. A Golden Age truly awaits us.”

“I-I don't know what to say.”

“You don't have to say anything. Just-”

“Yeah?” he asked.

“Let me teach you some strategy, you're still garbage at that.”

Merlin laughed, bright and sincere. “Yeah,” he said, “It'd be an honour.”

***

“Your Highness!” a voice called for him from across the hallway. Merlin turned around to see Lady Myria getting closer to him.

“My Lady, I didn't see you there,” he said and waited until she was walking alongside him.

“I hear the King has been treating you quite kindly recently. Some even say you two are friends.”

Merlin smiled at this notion. While it was true that they had gotten closer, he wouldn’t quite qualify him as a friend, the man was still too intimidating for that. And yet the idea made him happier than he thought it would.

“Yeah, he warmed up to me apparently. Realized I'm not as much of an idiot as I look.”

“You're not!” she agreed “But you're right.”

“Thanks.”

They walked in silence after that for a while until they reached the gardens. There, they sat down for a moment, the Lady saying she had something important to tell him.

“I know that...for a lady of my standing to be asking for something like this is ambitious at best but… I really like you. You're funny and kind and sweet and I would like to become your wife, if you'd have me.”

“I-”

“I know you could do better! But- but- I have a great relationship with the King, my father is one of his most trusted advisors. And that could mean a great alliance between Camelot and Mercia! Also, I can cook and sew! But I guess you have servants for that… But I can do lots of other things! And I've heard I'm not that unpleasant looking and- and-”

“My Lady!” he stopped her. “I appreciate the offer, but I'm afraid I must refuse.”

“I…”

“Let me explain, please?”

“Mn.”

Her sad expression broke his heart, but lying to her wasn’t an option. That would only hurt her more.

“This tradition of marrying for political gain...is one I could never begin to understand. And while you're a wonderful woman that I'm sure I could grow to love, I can't see myself being in love with you. Mainly because my heart already belongs to another.”

Her eyes widened.

“Oh...Oh! S-sorry, I didn't-”

“It's okay, you wouldn't know.”

“And who is she? Not that you have to tell me, of course! I just…” Merlin chuckled.

“Well, _he_ is quite great actually.” She stared at him again, surprised.“Yeah.”

“Wow, that's...I shouldn't have assumed.”

“It's quite alright. He's not here, so there's no way you could have known.”

Her expression softened.

“Well, for all that’s worth, I hope you two find each other and are happy.”

“I hope so too,” he told her. “I truly do.”

***

He walked into Morgana’s room the next morning.

“You won’t believe what happened with Lady Myria yesterda- Oh, whoa, you look terrible.”

“Thanks, Merlin,” Morgana said.

“Not that you ever look bad, but are you alright, Morgana? You don’t look like you are.”

“I’m fine,” she said. “I just didn’t sleep well, that’s all.”

Merlin went and sat next to her on the bed.

“Did you have a nightmare again? Maybe you should tell Gaius.”

“I did. He gave me some remedies, but I keep having the same dream and it's not letting me sleep.”

“Do you want to tell me about it? Maybe if you get it out of your system you will feel better.”

She sighed but nodded.

“I just sometimes have these nightmares that seem extremely real. I can't quite describe them really. They are just...different from normal dreams. Most of the time, I'll have the same one more than once, and this last one is one of those.”

“What happened?” Merlin asked.

“I was in the ballroom when suddenly the ground started shaking and the candles blew out. Then the air around me started becoming agitated until it formed a tornado. It was around me completely and it was terrifying.”

“You were inside the tornado?” 

“No, ” Morgana said. “I _was_ the tornado.”

“Wow… that sounds scary, ” he said.

“It was.”

“But it was just a dream, Morgana. No matter how real it seemed. You're here now and you're okay, aren't you?” Morgana sighed.

“Yes, I guess I am.” She smiled tentatively before shaking her head and changing the topic completely. “Well, what was this about Lady Myria that you wanted to tell me?”

“She proposed to me yesterday.”

“She what?!? Wow, bold move, ” Morgana said. “I'm guessing you turned her down.”

“Of course I did. you know I wouldn't marry someone I didn't love, and I love Arthur."

“Who you've met once in your life, mind you.”

He glared at her.

“Don't judge me in matters of the heart, it's not like I can help it.”

“Are you sure?”

“Look, ” he started, “I know it sounds crazy but there was something about him...it was like we were meant to meet. Like destiny was pulling us together somehow.”

“If this is your argument for why it isn't crazy, ” Morgana said, “it isn't working.”

“Shut up. Okay, back to Lady Myria.”

“You rejected her.”

“Yes.”

“And how did she take it?”

“Pretty well, ” Merlin said.

“Okay, so what's the problem?”

“How do I tell Uther? What if Bayard was only being nice to me because the thought he could get an alliance? What if-”

“Relax, ” Morgana interrupted, “Bayard actually likes you. Believe me, I've seen him hate enough people to know when he doesn't. Secondly, he already has an alliance with Camelot even if you don't marry Lady Myria. In fact, if he forces you into a marriage you don't want to be in, he could lose your friendship, which would be detrimental for the pact.”

Merlin considered all of this. He then asked, “And what about Uther?”

“Easy, ” Morgana said. “You don't tell him.”

“What?!? How can I not?”

“Look, you've already told him you had no intentions of marrying her, so the detection shouldn't surprise him. However, because he is Uther Pendragon, he will get mad and yell at you if he finds out, so it's better if he doesn't. If you don't tell him yourself it's less likely that he will find out through someone else since the only other people that know about it right now are me and Lady Myria herself. I am obviously not going to say anything and Lady Myria probably won't either since she'll want to avoid the embarrassment of others knowing she was rejected. So your best bet is to stay quiet and ignore the issue.”

“...huh,” he said. “I guess you're right.”

“I'm always right, Merlin. You should know that by now.”

  
  


***

Arthur couldn't stay hidden inside the house forever. He was a young, strong, healthy boy, an invaluable asset in a town like Ealdor, so he was soon called by other neighbours to help them in their tasks despite how much he tried getting out of it.

Things didn't go well.

“You are overwatering the crops!” an old lady had shouted while chasing him aways as he ran as fast as possible.

Of course, he was banned from ever going close to the fields again.

In his defence, it wasn't that he couldn't do what they were asking of him, but that no one was willing to teach him how to do them. They were all common knowledge for people like them. But he was a noble and he had never had to take care of crops, or chop down trees, or help build houses, or thatch roofs.

So he didn't know how to plough or plant, which obviously caused him a lot of problems in a town that sustained itself on agriculture.

He didn't realize where the trees would fall after cutting them, breaking a hole into Old Man Simmons's but that he had been harshly scolded for and been made to promise to repair.

That, though more of a success than his earlier efforts, resulted in a very ugly, very noticeably different wall. Well, at least that hadn't gotten him kicked out, though it hadn't earned him any praise either.

He knew that small places like this one, even outside of Camelot tended to say all of their problems were of superstitious nature and his incompetence at these basic things was no different.

As things were, rumours against him had started raising in the town. He was being called a “bringer of bad luck” and said to attract “dark energy”. Arthur pretended not to hear them, but they only got worse as time went on.

The next week brought bad weather and with that crops were weakened and even completely destroyed. The harvest wasn't going to be too abundant in the first place but with this they would be lucky if they didn't have to ration. 

Hushed murmurs of his supposed bad luck became outright accusations, some even going as far as demanding he left the village.

Arthur was starting to think that it would be better if he left.

“Hush, my little one. They must be crazy if they think they're getting you away from me, ” Hunith said as she stroked his hair, her arms wrapped around his shoulders.

She was the one keeping him sane through all of this. For all the things he wanted to leave behind, she was going to be the one he would miss the most. Maybe if he married Merlin, she could move into the castle with them. But no, the idea of his father allowing which a union was preposterous, no matter how much he wanted it.

But Hunith...she was a remarkable woman. Sweet and caring but strong and resilient like no one he'd ever met before. She brushed off the rumors saying “They don't know what they're talking about” or “They don't know you like I do” and just like that, no one else's opinion mattered. As long as he had her kind words of support he would be alright.

Oh, and Will.

Will didn't care about the rumours, he thought them funny. He teased him saying stuff like “If that's true you should curse that old woman Margaret. She's a menace.”

Arthur thought how lucky Merlin was for having friends like him.

Or any friends really.

As the Prince, Arthur couldn't have any friends, his father had always told him that. He could have considered Morgana one, but she was more like a sister to him. Gwen was wonderful and fun to be around, but she treated him with deference like she would be expected to. He hated it. Leon and him had grown up together with him only becoming a knight a few years before Arthur. They had always been quite close, but he had never allowed between them the closeness that would be present between friends.

So having Will was...new, to put it mildly.

“Hey Wart. Have some free time?”

“What?”

“What? Hunith didn't give you too many chores, didn't she? I told her you would be helping with the harvest later-” 

“Ah, yes, I have a couple of free hours.”

“Great! Want to go to the woods?”

“Sure. After you.” 

Once there Arhur made up his mind. He had been trying to solve everything by himself all of this time but it was clear that that wasn’t going to work any time soon. He needed help and for once in his life he was willing to ask for it.

“I need to tell you something, but you have to promise to believe in me.”

“Oh hell. What did you do now?”

“Nothing! It’s just...It's going to sound ridiculous.”

“With you it always does.”

Arthur rolled his eyes. “And you're going to think I'm crazy.”

“Already do."

Okay then.

“I don't know you.”

“What?”

“I don't know you, or the woman you call my mother or this place for that matter.” Will looked at him like he’d grown a second head.

“Are you sick?”

“No. Yes. I don't know,” he sighed. “I just know that a few days ago I was in my home in Camelot and now I am here. And I don't know how or why it happened, but I do believe that my life was swapped with Merlin's.”

“Merlin? As in Prince Merlin?”

“Yes, except he's not. The Prince I mean. That's me.”

“I don't understand."

“Honestly I don't quite get it either.”

“So you're trying to tell me that you're the Prince of Camelot but somehow you ended up in Ealdor?”

“Yes!”

Will shook his head.

“But that's impossible. I've known you since we were kids.”

“I know you think that, but I didn't even know you existed until a few days ago.”

“That makes no sense."

“I know.”

Arthur was starting to think that maybe telling Will wasn’t the best idea.

But then he said, “You wouldn't make this up, right?”

“I wouldn't, I swear.”

“Yeah, I didn't think so. You don't have the imagination.”

Arthur looked at him, feeling hopeful for the first time since the switch.

“So you believe me?” he asked.

“Yeah, ” Will said, “I think I do.”

Arthur could have cried with joy, but he didn't. He just smiled and laughed. Will laughed with him.

“So the Prince of Camelot, huh? What are you going to do?”

“I don't know. I have to find a way to travel to Camelot and talk to Merlin to see how to solve this mess.”

“Well, you'll probably have to wait till the Commoner's Banquet then.”

“Yeah, that's what I thought. Ugh, I can't believe this happened!”

“It's nuts.”

“You don't say.”

“Might as well make the most of it, yeah? Right now we have to take care of the firewood or your mother will kill us.”

“My mother… It sounds strange.”

“Yeah, well you should get used to it. You won't hear the end of it if you call her Hunith.”

“Uh-uh.”

So now he had Will, and if he had Will, maybe he would be fine.

And then the attack happened.

***

The sound of horses and the cacophony of screams had been the first thing to alert him. The men, dressed in roughly made fur garments and heavy armor pieces broke through the village, causing chaos and destruction as they went.

“We can't give you more, we need this to survive,” Arthur heard Hunith say to the leader of them. He vaguely recognized him from some previous run-ins. Kanen was his name and he was a brute, only able to get away with what he did because he had some sort of deal with Cendred.

Arthur's head snapped up at the loud sound of a slap. Hunith was on the ground, hand cradling her face and Arthur saw red.

“Hey!” he screamed, getting Kanen's attention. “Don't touch her!”

“Arthur, dear-”

He stood in front of the man, raising his head in obvious challenge.

“Oh, a brave one, I see, ” Kanen said with a snarl. Then he turned to his men, “We leave! we'll return in three days time to collect what you owe us. Don't even believe you can start to face me, village boy.”

That name stuck with him.

They mounted their horses again and left and everyone was left to repair the damage they had done in the few minutes they had been there.

***

The first reaction to the attack was vicious, needing to put all the blame on someone. And it just so happened that the most obvious person was Arthur. But this time, Arthur didn’t let it get to him because he had a plan.

They needed to fight back if they wanted to get out of this and make it through the winter. For that, they would need strategy. And Arthur was an expert on that.

Of course, that didn’t mean anyone else though he was.

“How can we believe that you know what you’re talking about?”

“Yeah, this is your fault in the first place!”

“How do we know you’re not working with them?”

“Arthur has literally lived here all his life, you know him!” Will said and for once Arthur was grateful for his harshness and blunt words.

“Look,” he started, “ You can choose not to believe me if you wish, but right now we only have one choice and it is to fish back. If we don’t Kanen will destroy us and we won’t make it until spring. I’m giving you a chance to do this right, to save Ealdor and make the most out of what we have. You can decide if you want to take your chances with me or not but know what the alternative is.”

“And what can you do?”

“I can teach you to fight.’

“How could you know that?”

“Does that matter?” Will snapped. “He’s right, it’s our only chance.”

“Okay, who is willing to try.”

Will stood forward and at his actions a few other people did too. It was fewer than Arthur would have wished, but at least it was something. He was wishing that he could show them he knew what he was doing.

“Alright then, we meet at dawn tomorrow. bring anything that could serve as a weapon. Anyone else is welcome to join the training any time. Now you all should rest.”

The night came and went in restless sleep, but not for something other than excitement. He would make them win, he would make them warriors even if that meant not sleeping for weeks.

This he was good at, the fighting, the teaching how to fight. He only had to make everyone else believe in him and everything else would hopefully slot into place.

He stood up as soon as the first few rays of sunlight made themselves visible and grabbing the sword he had stolen from Kanen’s men, he went out and prepared to fight.

Some people were already waiting for him, though they weren't many. Whatever, Athur thought. He was the best warrior in the Five Kingdoms and he could show them what he could do.

He gave them each a weapon and said, “Okay, who's going to try to take me down first?”

A man, the blacksmith, took a step forward. He was bigger than Arthur and obviously knew enough about swords to know how to hold and use one. But Arthur wasn't worried.

The man attacked first, but Arthur countered and in three well paced moves, he disarmed him.

“Alright, now you see that I know what I'm doing-”

“How do we know you weren't just lucky?”

“Aren't you the one's always accusing me of being a bearer of bad luck?” he asked. “But alright, I'll demonstrate again. Who wants to try?”

This time a woman stepped up. She was way better, focusing on avoiding his attacks and getting some hits in instead of relying on brute force to get through to him. However, in the end Arthur still won.

“Is that enough or does anyone else want to try, ” he asked.

No one said anything.

“Alright then. Let's get training.”

The first day went slow, but that was to be expected with people who'd never fought before. However, he was able to make good progress in stances and basic defense moves.

He went to bed feeling more like himself than the last few days and his deep sleep reflected that. 

The next day, he had planned to keep working from where they'd left off the day before but he couldn't.

Because there was double the amount of people there.

“We want to fight for our homes, ” they said, and Arthur couldn't say anything against that.

So he taught them.

And the pattern repeated itself each day. He would wake up, there would be more people wanting to learn and he would teach them.

He only knew that Kanen would be getting a big surprise.

***

He heard the horses before anyone else did. They were hiding behind the houses waiting for Kanen and his men when he heard them coming.

He counted them.

Four horses. Four men.

“Did you really run away? Not so brave, I see.”

Kanen sounded smug but Arthur knew he had made the deadly mistake. He knew he would.

He underestimated them.

“Now!” Arthur screamed and everyone came out of their hiding spot. Kanen's men were trained and should take some people down, but they were extremely outnumbered.

Before long, Kanen realized the battle was lost, so he abandoned his goal to go for Arthur.

He swung his sword at him mercilessly, hit after hit, clearly driven by the desperation of sensing his loss. He was an experienced warrior, that much was clear, but he still wasn't quite a match for Arthur, especially when he was that agitated.

He just needed the perfect moment to strike.

“Who are you, boy?!? How do you know how to fight like this? Who sent you, huh?!?” the man asked while he attacked with all his might.

But then Arthur dodged and the sword went full force into the ground. Arthur stepped on the blade and then used his own to plunge into Kanen's stomach.

“I am Arthur of Ealdor, and you messed with the wrong village, ” he said before the man collapsed.

The fight had ended. They had won. Ealdor was safe.

Everyone clapped and gasped and hugged. Arthur ran up to Hunith who was already waiting for him.

“Oh, my dear. You did so well.”

“Thank you, mother, ” he said, feeling like his heart was going to burst out of his chest.

“Hey! What about me?” Arthur turned around to see Will, who had been fighting alongside him, with his arms open.

So he hugged him too.

When they came apart, he saw that a group of the villagers had gathered behind them and were waiting to speak to him.

Matthew was the one to speak up.

“Arthur, it seems that we misjudged you. Without you we wouldn’t have been able to survive this fight. for that, we thank you and hope that you can forgive us.”

Arthur, for a moment, wanted to agree. He wanted to say that they had been cruel and cast him aside without a second thought. But he knew better now.

“I also haven’t been the best to you,” he started. “There are a lot of things that I didn't know how to do and instead of asking for help, I just did them anyway and caused a lot of damage. And what for? Just my pride. I have been arrogant, and for that I am sorry as well. I hope this is a new beginning for all of us.”

“Indeed,” Matthew said.

Things were starting to seem a little brighter.

***

when they went back home for the night, Arthur ate all of the food Hunith gave him and after they both sat in front of the fire.

“Arthur, dear, you know you can tell me anything, right?” she asked.

“Of course. Why?”

She sighed. “Where did you learn to fight like that? No one else may know, but I have the certainty that no one has ever taught you.”

Arthur could have lied or deflected the question. Lord knows years of being in court taught him how to do that. But if there was someone who deserved the truth, it was Hunith.

So he started from the beginning. He told her of his life as the prince of Camelot and of how each year they prepared the Commoner’s Banquet. He told her about meeting Merlin and falling in love at first sight. He spoke of the dinner and the dance and the kiss they shared and how after that he had woken up there, apparently living in his place.

Letting out all of his feelings of confusion and anger and shock that he’d been bottling up felt good, but it was also scary. He wasn’t used to being vulnerable and this felt like being stripped bare.

However, Hunith said, “Oh, sweetheart. I knew you were not my Arthur.”

“What?” he asked, not quite understanding what she meant.

“I have birthed you, raised you and seen you grow. I knew there was something different the minute you woke up that day. I just didn't know what it was.”

“I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner.”

“It's okay, my boy, ” she said, pulling him into a hug. “It must have been scary for you.”

“It was.”

She kissed him on top of his head.

“Well then. We must focus on getting you to Camelot for the Commoner's Banquet so that you can get back home. The feast is in a week and a half I believe.”

“Yes,” Arthur said. “Would it be weird to say I will miss you?”

“Oh, honey, ” Hunith replied, “I'll miss you too.”

***

The week after Kanen’s attack was rather pleasant. There was still a lot of work to do around the village, but this time people were willing to explain to Arrhur how to do them and he was willing to learn.

That by itself made things much easier for everyone involved.

It turned out that while he was absolutely useless at certain things, he was quite good at others. For example, he could easily carry firewood into people’s homes since he had the strength to do so.

They also let him hunt, which he was already quite good at doing, so the rumors about his bad luck completely disappeared and started being replaced by ones of good luck.

Arthur still didn’t quite believe them, but he much preferred these to the other ones.

That week was also one of preparations for the feast. Arthur had to find clothes to wear and he quickly found out that he didn’t have anything quite suitable for the ball. Merlin must have made those clothes himself he realized. Because of this he settled on a blue tunic tha ad a nicer, softer fabric than the others and packed that along with some regular clothes for the journey.

After putting all of that in a bag he managed to get someone to lend him a horse and with that the week and a half went by and they were ready to go to Camelot.

Hunith tried to argue that it would be better for him to go alone, but he told her that since she’d been there the first time he'd attended the banquet, it would be safer to bring her this time as well, just to be safe.

So he helped her pack as well and before long they were saying goodbye to Ealdor.

They decided not to tell anyone of the motive for their trip so as to not cause a commotion.

Well, they did tell someone.

“If you forget about me I’ll go to Camelot and drag your royal ass out of there, you hear me?”

“I’ll miss you too, Will,” Arthur said, pulling the other man into a hug. “It was great knowing you.”

“You too, Wart,” he said, eyes suspiciously shiny.

“You’re not about to start crying on me, are you?”

“Shut up,” Will said and Arthur laughed. “Well, you better start going if you want to reach an inn before nightfall.”

“You’re right. Goodbye, Will.”

“Goodbye, Arthur.”

So they got on the horse and left Ealdor to go to Camelot.

It didn’t feel like coming home at all.

***

The Banquet Hall was decorated just like it had been last time, Merlin noted. The red ornaments and candlelight warmth was still there. And yet, it didn’t feel quite as magical. Mainly because people were starting to arrive, all dressed in royal blues this time, and wasn’t that just hilarious? 

But Arthur was still nowhere to be seen.

“Merlin, you're fidgeting.”

“I'm not,” he told Morgana.

“He's going to come.”

“You don't know that.”

“Merlin-” she started, but then she stopped.“There he is.”

And there he was. Arthur, dressed in clothes admittedly less fine than the last time he'd seen him but just as fitting and pleasant. His eyes sought something and, when they found it, he charged straight at him only to envelop him in a hug.

“I've missed you, idiot.”

“You too, clotpole.”

“Is that even a word?”

“It is now,” Merlin said, smiling wide.

Arthur laughed, feeling like he was really losing his mind.

“What have we managed to get ourselves into?”

“I don't know,” Merlin answered honestly.

“I can't even understand how it could have happened. I mean, it must have been magic, obviously, but who would do such a thing and why?”

“Well, you see, I have a theory for that.”

“Please do tell me.” Merlin took a deep breath.

“The thing is... _ihavemagic_.”

Arthur tensed and froze for a second.

“What?”

“I have magic! And it might have...done this? On its own? Without me telling it to?”

“Of course, why am I not surprised? How did you even survive a month here?” Merlin scoffed.

“It wasn't easy, believe me.”

“Well, that doesn't matter now. What we need is a way to fix it.”

“Yeah, I think I know how to, I did some research and I found a spell.”

“Where?”

“The library has way more interesting stuff than you'd think,” Merlin said knowing full well that Arthur probably hadn't gone to the library in a long time, least of all into the forbidden section.

“Right. Okay, how do we do it then?”

“I will cast the spell and we will be sent back to the moment when the magic was casted which, if I'm right, was ummm... our first kiss,” he said, flushing red.

“How do you know it will be then?” Arthur asked.

“Do you remember going to sleep that night? Actually, do you remember anything after that dance?”

“I-” and Arthur realized that no, he didn't. He had assumed that he had gone back to sleep and that the night was blurry because of the wine he'd had. But he could recall almost everything up until that point. 

He looked up at Merlin wide-eyed.

“Exactly. We talked, we danced, we kissed, our lives got mixed up. And going back is the only way to fix it,” Merlin explained, but suddenly hesitation filled both of them.

“It's quite...sad, isn't it? To erase all of this? I've grown quite fond of your mother and your friend Will.” Merlin sighed and nodded.

“And I of Morgana and Gwen and Leon. But this doesn't mean we're giving them up, we just have to find a way to make it work. We just can't live each other's life forever. Besides, I quite miss my mother and Will as well.”

“And I Camelot. And the bed,” Arthur pointed out.

“Ugh! I'll miss that bed! And the food!”

“Yes, I wasn't too fond of the food in Ealdor until they let me hunt.”

“They let you in charge of their food? Wow, ” Merlin said.

“Hey! I'll have you know that I'm an excellent hunter.”

“I don't doubt it.”

They both fell silent again.

“We have to,” Arthur said.

“We do.”

“Okay, let's do this. What do we do?”

Merlin grabbed Arthur's hands and closed his eyes, thinking about the words of the spell. He opened them and gave Arthur a nod. _It's going to be fine, we will get our lives back and we will be okay._

He spoke the words.

A bright light appeared around them, enveloping them and forcing them to close their eyes.

When they opened them again, things were evidently different, but not completely unfamiliar. Arthur was dressed in Camelot red and he wore a circlet on his head while Merlin had on the same tunic he had embroidered especially for the feast.

They were back to their timeline.

“It worked.”

“It did.”

“...”

“...”

“Now what?”

They didn't have much time to think about it, because all the candles in the room went out before lighting up again and then going up in flames.

Merlin looked at Morgana and realized she had a very familiar shine of gold in her eyes, panic shaking her to the very core. 

“What's happening?” Arthur asked.

At that moment Merlin realized. Morgana's acceptance of his magic, her questions about it, her dreams.

Her dreams. The tornado.

“She's losing control,” Merlin answered knowing full well that the prince wouldn't understand, but that didn't matter. He had to do something about it.

The windows in the room all shattered and wind came rushing through the room, creating a tornado around Morgana.

“What's the meaning of this?!?” Merlin heard Uther ask, but he knew he was just scared. As he should be.

Merlin knew he had to break through to Morgana if he wanted to get her to stop, and that meant reaching the eye of the storm. It was dangerous, but he was the only one who could do it.

So he went.

“Merlin, what are you doing?!? You're going to get hurt!”

“Trust me!” he shouted back at Arthur and then stood closer to the whirlwind.

In a moment, his eyes flashed gold and a shield of light enveloped him, protecting him from harm.

He walked slowly through the tornado, knowing better than to scare Morgana in a situation like this.

The girl was now in his field of view, curled into a ball in the middle of her accidental display of magic, visibly shaking and sobbing.

“Morgana,” he called softly.

“Who are you? Get away from me! I will hurt you!” she screamed.

“You won't! You won't, see? I'm fine. I got here and I'm fine.”

“How?”

“Magic,” he said and gestured towards the light surrounding him, shielding him.

“What Is happening to me?” she asked.

“You have lost control, but it's okay. I can help you. I just need you to trust me.”

She looked straight into his eyes and hesitated for a moment, but ultimately nodded.

“What do I do?”

“First I need you to take a deep breath. You need to calm down, can you do that for me?”

“Yeah.”

She closed her eyes and did as he said. The wind around them slowed down a little. Merlin got closer to her and sat down across from her. He spoke again.

“Now, I need to tell you something and you have to listen to me very carefully, okay.”

“Okay,” Morgana said.

“You have magic. I know you've been taught to fear it your whole life and I know you're scared. You've been repressing all this time because you didn't want it to be true, didn't want to have to acknowledge that you were the thing you were expected to hate. But that's not true, Morgana. Magic isn't evil and it isn't something you choose. It's what you are, and it is ingrained in every single fibre of your being and that's okay. It's no more of a tool that a sword is. Yes, it can be used to hurt people but it can also be used to save them. You are good, Morgana. I know you are. And I know that you don't know how I know, but the fact is that I do. I know how kind and intelligent and strong you are and if I were to trust anyone with a tool as precious as this, that person would be you. You don't have to fear yourself, Morgana. I can help you. I understand.”

Morgana looked at him with her eyes wide open and put her arms around his neck, crushing him in a hug.

It was only then that he noticed that the wind had disappeared and that everyone was looking at them

“What's the meaning of this?!?” cane Uther's voice resonating through the ballroom. “Capture the sorcerer immediately!”

“But sire-”

“You dare to question me?!?”

“He just helped Lady Morgana.”

“I don't care, he has magic! Seize him.”

The guards looked apprehensive, but they made to move anyway. Arthur came in front of Merlin to shield him

“Arthur, move this instant.”

“I won't.”

“What?”

“I will not, father. Merlin just saved Morgana, everyone saw it and you cannot punish him for that.”

“He has magic!”

“And so do I,” said Morgana standing up, he chin raised and her eyes defiant. “If you are to execute him then you must execute me too.”

“I will not. He has corrupted you!”

“I didn't know him until two minutes ago! When could he have done that?!?"

“If that is the truth, then why are you protecting a stranger instead of doing what you king says?”

“She doesn't know him, but I do,” Arthur said. “And I will not see him or Morgana hurt. You have a choice here, father. Either to henceforth lift the ban on magic and confess and apologize for your behavior or to stand your ground and resign your right to the throne.”

“You wouldn't.”

“I am.”

“I have the council on my side, if you think you can overthrow me-”

“Actually,” Merlin started, “you don't. The council started being replaced in the last few months at King Bayard's request for renovation in the interest of having a court to support the transition between the Crown Prince and the King. Most of them trust Arthur's judgement and leadership skills more than you, though they still think he's much too subjected to your ideals. If he were to overthrow you I fear that they would all stand on his side, not yours.”

“And how do you know that?”

“It's a long story,” Merlin said.

“My people love me, they know he isn't ready for this much responsibility,” Uther countered.

“Is that true, Merlin?” Arthur asked.

“Your people don't have a side yet because they fear you, so taking a stance is out of the question. However, you definitely treat the lower classes worse than the nobility as if they are less worthy of your time and efforts only because of the position of their birth. They have problems and issues they know won't get solved by you when you could easily do so. Arthur may not know how to solve all of these things, but I do. I have lived like them all of my life and I know a lot about these issues. I will stand at Arthur's side to make sure he becomes the king I know he can be.”

“And who are you to do all of that?!?”

Arthur grabbed Merlin's hand, to Uther's despair, and said, “He's my consort.”

“Is everyone going to just stand for this madness?!?” Uther screamed in panic. But no one moved, they all knew just who was right and who was wrong in this situation.

Then someone took a step forward.

“I'm sorry Uther, but we all just saw magic being used for good. You have been lying to us, your people all of these years and many people have died because of it. I believe your time as King is over,” Leon said. “Long live King Arthur!”

“Long Live King Arthur!” the crowd echoed as the guards escorted Uther out.

From that day forward, Albion's golden age began.

***

After his coronation, Arthur offered Uther to stay in the castle. He might not have been the King anymore, but he was his father. Yet Uther was too proud and too hurt to accept. Instead, he left to go to a neighbouring kingdom, the Kingdom Of Carleon, where he had been offered to stay for having been friends with their king for a long time. The Queen, Annis, was a great supporter of Arthur, unbeknownst to Uther, and she often wrote letters to him speaking about how he was doing. All things considered, Arthur was happy about the conditions in which his father was living.

  
  


Soon after Uther left, Merlin returned to Ealdor for a little while before coming back to Camelot with Hunith and Will. This time, they were there to stay. Arthur and he explained their adventure to Morgana, Leon, Gwen and Hunith, who were almost laughing at the idea of the switch of their positions and all the trouble it must have brought. It certainly sounded crazy from an outside perspective, but, in the end, both of them had learned a lot from the experience and they had gained relationships that they didn't want to lose.

Ultimately they didn't lose them, because not two months after that, Merlin and Arthur got married. Merlin was made King Consort and court sorcerer and Arthur couldn't have been happier with his new husband.

“You married my idiot brother, so I have no choice but to like you now,” Morgana had said. Merlin learned a lot about her during his month in Camelot so it wasn't too hard to pick up their relationship from where they'd left off. She had been very excited at the prospect of him teaching her magic and so. They were close again. The same happened with Leon and Gwen.

Arthur had grown very fond of Hunith and he certainly wanted to keep being family to her, so when she'd moved into the castle after the wedding, Arthur had been thrilled. “Arthur, dear, you are very sweet and my son cares about you a lot. You are his soulmate and therefore you are also my son.” Arthur would never admit he had cried at that, it was a secret between Hunith and him. And Morgana, because she knew everything, the harpy.

Overall, this arrangement made everyone extremely happy and after all they had been through, they believed they deserved it.

Some of the members of the council, however, had other ideas, because they kept pushing Arthur to name an heir to the throne or to find a Queen to father one. Arthur was obviously opposed to the idea of being with anyone that wasn't Merlin so, while he would never admit it, he decided to do something out of pure spite; he named Morgana his heir.

This started off innocent enough, the council was happy because now they had the hope to have an heir of Pendragon blood if Morgana got married and had a kid. These aspirations were rather short-lived since only two weeks after Morgana proposed to Guinevere and they got married a month after that. Their ceremony was lovely and it pissed off the council severely, which made Morgana extremely happy. And with that, Camelot had two Kings and two Princesses.

Those members of the council who still opposed their decisions were kicked out quickly after that.

They divided their duties based on what they knew they did best. Arthur was as kind and caring as Merlin but Merlin was way better at dealing with people, so while they both went to the audience sessions and they actively participated in making the resolutions, Merlin was the one who would deal with the townsfolk. He was also the one who wrote speeches and made sure Arthur didn't make any impulsive decisions, because Lord knew he tended to make those all too often.

Arthur oversaw training because Merlin had wanted to stay as far away from the training field as possible. Except, of course, when they were practising archery. Turns out he was quite good at that. And if he was cheating a little bit, no one but Morgana had to know about it.

All the extremely political things and the official appearances were mostly left to Arthur. Merlin was there, of course, but he didn't trust himself to not scream at a noble if they truly deserved it. Arthur surely wouldn't say anything if he did but he didn't want to cause yet another diplomatic incident.

As a Court Sorcerer, Merlin also had a lot of duties. So many, in fact, that it didn't take long for him to ask Morgana for help. She had become quite skilled after training with the druids for a few weeks so it wasn't too much work for her to help Merlin when things got very busy in the castle.

Hunith also was granted a spot in the council and a piece of land that granted her the status of a noble. She kept everyone in line and was one of Camelot's most valuable assets. The same happened with Gwen who was loved by every person in the kingdom with equal fervour.

Will, funnily enough, became a knight. Soon after Merlin and Arthur's wedding he and Leon had a sparring match and it turned out he was as great a fighter as he had been against Kanen and his men. Arthur welcomed him into the army with open arms.

Camelot flourished under their rule, and a land of love and magic was born, the people more content than they'd ever been.

And they lived happily ever after.

The end.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Feel free to tell me what you thoughts in the comments💜


End file.
